Contributions to the Cultural History of Early Tibet
BTSL-14-kapstein_CS2.indd i 11-6-2007 14:25:01 Brill’s Tibetan Studies Library
Edited by Henk Blezer Alex McKay Charles Ramble
VOLUME 14
BTSL-14-kapstein_CS2.indd ii 11-6-2007 14:25:01 Contributions to the Cultural History of Early Tibet
Edited by Matthew T. Kapstein Brandon Dotson
LEIDEN • BOSTON 2007
BTSL-14-kapstein_CS2.indd iii 11-6-2007 14:25:01 Cover illustration: Miniature of the bodhisattva Nyi ma rab tu snang ba adorning a 12th century Prajñ§p§ramit§ manuscript preserved at the 8th century temple of ’On Ke-ru. Photo courtesy of the Tibetan and Himalayan Digital Library (www.thdl.org).
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BTSL-14-kapstein_CS2.indd iv 11-6-2007 14:25:01
CONTENTS
Preface ...... vii Abbreviations ...... xiii
PART ONE: SOCIAL AND POLITICAL HISTORY
BRANDON DOTSON Divination and Law in the Tibetan Empire: The Role of Dice in the Legislation of Loans, Interest, Marital Law and Troop Conscription ...... 3
BIANCA HORLEMANN The Relations of the Eleventh-Century Tsong kha Tribal Confederation to Its Neighbour States on the Silk Road ...... 79
PART TWO: LITERARY AND ORAL TRANSMISSIONS
YOSHIRO IMAEDA The History of the Cycle of Birth and Death: A Tibetan Narrative from Dunhuang ...... 105
SAM VAN SCHAIK Oral Teachings and Written Texts: Transmission and Transformation in Dunhuang ...... 183
PART THREE: CHINESE TRENDS IN TIBETAN BUDDHISM
MATTHEW T. KAPSTEIN The Tibetan Yulanpen jing ̍ϥŢǮʷǶ ...... 211 vi CONTENTS
CARMEN MEINERT The Conjunction of Chinese Chan and Tibetan Rdzogs chen Thought: Reflections on the Tibetan Dunhuang Manuscripts IOL Tib J 689-1 and PT 699 ...... 239
List of Contributors ...... 303
Illustrations ...... 305
PREFACE
Six decades ago, when Documents de Touen-houang relatifs à l’histoire du Tibet was released, Jacques Bacot remarked in his foreword that in 1922, when he had first attempted to translate the texts now known as the Old Tibetan Chronicle and the Old Tibetan Annals, he judged his efforts to be too insufficient to merit public- ation. The study of an important Tibetan lexicon of archaic terms, the Li shi gur khang, together with the progress realized by F.W. Thomas in the investigation of the Dunhuang manuscripts in London, as well as Ch. Toussaint’s recognition of archaisms in the Padma bka’ thang, permitted the three scholars to launch a fruitful collaboration, resulting in the first sustained interpretation of a key collection of Old Tibetan historical texts. Though many aspects of their work have been by now superceded, Documents de Touen- houang remains a landmark in the study of early medieval Tibet. The considerable progress realized since that time has been due to the patient labours of Tibetanists in Europe and Japan, and increasingly in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China and the United States as well. With the application of new digital technologies to the reproduction and analysis of early Tibetan documents, what began as a slow trickle of research has grown into a stream, and matters that were formerly obscure to the point of unintelligibility have gradually come to be elucidated. With this development of the field, scholars are increasingly attending to the social and cultural milieux of the early period. This can be seen in the painstaking work of Tsuguhito Takeuchi in his investigations of letters, contracts and related documents dating to the imperial period.1 Attention to detail in the investigation of such quotidian matters adds depth and dimension to our understanding of a period that has all too often served as a pristine ground onto which scholars, both inside the Tibetan cultural area and beyond, have projected their idealizations of a heroic past, be it Buddhist or other- wise. The contributions to the present volume exemplify the concern for minute detail that is essential for progress in this area, but at the
1 T. TAKEUCHI 1995. Tibetan Contracts from Central Asia. Tokyo: Daizo Shuppan. viii M.T. KAPSTEIN AND B. DOTSON same time engage many of the larger questions facing historians of early Tibet. In part one, ‘Social and Political History’, the contributors examine key aspects of Tibetan imperial administration and post- imperial affairs. The first chapter, by Brandon Dotson, applies a social-historical approach to Old Tibetan legal documents, encoded within which the values and practices of the Tibetan Empire, and its rigid social stratification, are revealed. They also shed much light on such topics as Tibetan marriage and exchange patterns, loan contracts, corvée labour, the legal status of Buddhist temples and monasteries, and the conscription system of the Tibetan military. Strong centralization appears to have been the rule under the empire of the btsan po, and the diffuse ‘galactic polity’ that came to characterize later Tibetan regimes is hardly at all in evidence. One of the most intriguing aspects of Dotson’s chapter is the revelation that legal cases were often resolved with recourse to divination dice. Divination was a popular and widespread practice during the imperial period, and is discussed in Old Tibetan ritual texts in which ritual specialists known as bon and gshen employ mo divination in their healing rites. With the empire’s disintegration in the mid-ninth century, power devolved upon local authorities and strongmen, who took charge not just of the governance of their domains, but equally of their external relationships. Tibet, in effect, became for a time a cluster of indep- endent principalities. Bianca Horlemann’s chapter focuses upon the Inner Asian connections of one such realm, that of Tsong-kha in the northeastern region of Amdo. Though far removed from Tibet’s traditional central districts of Dbus-Gtsang, the effort to recapitulate aspects of Tibet’s earlier imperial configuration is evident in the later claim that Tsong-kha’s rulers were descended from the Yar-lung kings and the attribution to them, accordingly, of the title of btsan po. As prior studies have shown, the rise of the Tibetan Empire occasioned not only changes of power relations, but equally changes of knowledge, requiring new technologies associated with the spread of literacy:2 the redaction of legal procedure considered by Dotson offers a case in point. The ways and means of the transmission of knowledge during this period, however, are still but poorly under-
2 For instance, M.T. KAPSTEIN 2000. The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism: Conversion, Contestation, and Memory. New York: Oxford University Press, esp. 10-17, 54-56. PREFACE ix stood. The two chapters of part two, ‘Literary and Oral Trans- missions’, take up several dimensions of the question. Yoshiro Imaeda’s reconstruction and translation of the Dunhuang Tibetan text, History of the Cycle of Birth and Death, is already well known through its original French publication in 1981. In presenting it here in a revised English version, it is to be hoped that it will reach a larger readership than it had previously. As with Dotson’s discussion of the close relationship between administrative and ritual functions, early Tibetan ritual is also central to Imaeda’s chapter in its consideration of funerary practices. The study of Old Tibetan mortuary rites, an especially interesting subfield within the overall cultural history of early Tibet, was essentially pioneered by M. Lalou, whose treatment of PT 1042, concerning royal funerals, paved the way for the documentary investigation of such issues as the rivallry of bon-po and Buddhist, and the competition of ritual specialists for royal patronage.3 Nevertheless, research in this area has often rested on the problematic assumption that the bon and bon- po found in Old Tibetan literary texts were more or less identical to the adherents of the Bon religion, as systematized in about the early eleventh century.4 Among the Dunhuang manuscripts, we find several texts concern- ing, or related to, funeral rites. Most of these contain narratives in which the dead are attended by ritual specialists known as bon or gshen, and often involve the sacrifice of sheep and horses as psychopomp animals that guide the deceased to the land of the dead.5 While some of these texts display no apparent Buddhist influence, others do, and one Buddhist text famously co-opts and transforms early Tibetan funerary rites in order to do away with such practices
3 M. LALOU 1952. Rituel Bon-po des funérailles royals. Journal Asia-tique 240, 339-61. 4 Here we follow Stein’s custom of employing the capitalized term ‘Bon’ to refer to the organized religion, which took shape in approximately the early eleventh century through the work of Shen-chen Klu-dga` and his disciples (D. MARTIN 2001. Unearthing Bon Treasures: Life and Contested Legacy of a Tibetan Scripture Revealer, with a General Bibliography of Bon. Leiden: Brill, 92), and of referring to the ancient Tibetan priests with the italicized, lower case ‘bon’ or ‘bon-po’. These conventions are not intended, however, to prefigure the outcome of the debate concerning the continuity between the earlier and later traditions. 5 See R.A. STEIN 1971. Du récit au rituel dans les manuscrits Tibétains de Touen-Houang. In A. MACDONALD (ed.), Études Tibétaines Dédiées à la Mémoire de Marcelle Lalou. Paris: Adrien Maisonneuve, 479-547. x M.T. KAPSTEIN AND B. DOTSON as animal sacrifice. 6 This dialogue between Buddhism and local traditions is a common theme throughout Buddhist history, and is particularly pertinent to its Tibetan permutations, where issues of religious identity are so often bound up with dialogic evolution and mimicry.7 Situated within the context of these competing funerary rites, Imaeda’s text, the History of the Cycle of Birth and Death is, he argues, a purely Tibetan composition inspired by one of the master- pieces of Mah y na literature, the Ga avy has tra, a work that enjoyed tremendous success in medieval China. As such, the History is based not on the transformation and co-opting of existing non- Buddhist rites, but takes Buddhist canonical tradition as its point of departure, and then popularizes this for a Tibetan audience. The transposition of its story into a Tibetan verse-narrative offers particularly striking evidence of the processes whereby Buddhist ideas and literary motifs were assimilated into the Tibetan cultural milieu. Imaeda’s work is based upon a number of Dunhuang manuscripts, all of which are incomplete. And where they overlap with one another, although the texts generally correspond quite closely, one notices numbers of variants that cannot be readily explained with reference to scribal practice alone. How are we to think about the variation that we find in the extant Old Tibetan documents? It is this question that is taken up in Sam van Schaik’s chapter, applying the conclusions of investigations of medieval oral and literary trans- mission to the study of early Tibetan texts. Van Schaik argues that the simple dichotomy of the oral versus the literary fails to do justice to the complexity of the Tibetan situation, where, just as in medieval Europe, oral practice and writing in various ways were mutually informed and conditioned. In the scenario that van Schaik envisions as having given rise to some of these texts—students taking down the words of their teachers either in person or from memory—the patterns of variation in early Tibetan texts are seen to resemble somewhat those that we find in English traditional ballads. And con- sidering the structured repetitions characterizing a work such as the History of the Cycle of Birth and Death, studied by Imaeda, the comparison with Western ballad traditions seems a compelling one. Though the transmission of Indian Buddhist traditions to Tibet, both under the empire and for many centuries after, has long been a
6 This is PT 239, discussed in R.A. STEIN 1970. Un document ancien relatif aux rites funéraires des Bon-po Tibétains. Journal Asiatique 258, 155-85. 7 Refer to Z. BJERKEN 2002. Hall of mirrors: Tibetan religious histories as mim- etic narratives. Acta Orientalia 64, 177-223. PREFACE xi key theme in the representation of Tibetan cultural history, we know that Chinese learning, religious and secular, reached imperial Tibet as well. Part three, ‘Chinese Trends in Tibetan Buddhism’, explores this east-to-west movement of texts and ideas. Matthew T. Kapstein’s chapter, ‘The Tibetan Yulanpen jing’, supplies a textual study of the ninth-century Tibetan translation of a famous Chinese Buddhist apocryphon, thus extending a line of research pioneered by the late R.A. Stein. As a close comparison of the Chinese and Tibetan texts reveals, the translator, the famed ’Gos Chos-grub of Dunhuang, gave to this short s tra, which concerns rites to be performed for the salvation of deceased parents and ancestors, an almost impeccable Indian veneer. Nevertheless, the work’s Chinese antecedents remain evident in several key turns of phrase. The transmission of the Yulanpen jing to Tibet, moreover, suggests that Chinese ‘popular’ Buddhism, and not only the more rarified traditions of learning and meditation, may have played some role in the Tibetan adoption of the foreign religion. As with the History of the Cycle of Birth and Death, in connection with which the question of ‘apocryphal’ Buddhist scriptures is also raised, the action in the Yulanpen jing is driven by the death of one’s parents. The orientation of the two works is similar as well: as Imaeda notes in his conclusions, the History of the Cycle of Birth and Death, in common with the other early Tibetan funerary texts, appears to have been concerned more with transcendent rebirth than with enlightenment and ‘precious human birth’. The same can be said of the Yulanpen jing, in which the Buddha prescribes the proper rites for securing the rebirth of Mulian’s parents and ancestors in heavenly abodes. In Carmen Meinert’s contribution, however, we turn to the refined meditations of Chinese Chan, and their plausible connections with the Tibetan Great Perfection, or Rdzogs-chen. Although this issue has aroused considerable speculation in recent decades, only slight progress has been made in grounding the discussion in solid philological evidence. It is this that Meinert begins to accomplish, through the careful comparison of selected Chan and Rdzogs-chen documents from Dunhuang, demonstrating precisely their complex relationships. Meinert’s analysis, like that proposed recently by S. van Schaik and J. Dalton, describes the creative evolution of religious practices between China and Tibet in multi-ethnic xii M.T. KAPSTEIN AND B. DOTSON
Dunhuang.8 Here, trends such as Chan, Mah yoga and Rdzogs-chen enjoyed a degree of fluidity prior to their codification as distinct systems of teaching. Meinert’s doctrinal analysis is complemented by van Schaik’s observations on oral tradition, which allow us to imagine a time of creative exuberance when, as in van Schaik’s phrasebook, one adept might meet another and exclaim, ‘I like Vajray na. Teach it!’
For facilitating the present publication, we are grateful for the encouragements of Albert Hoffstädt at Brill, and those of Henk Blezer, Alex McKay, and Charles Ramble, the editors of Brill’s Tibetan Studies Library.
Matthew T. Kapstein Brandon Dotson
8 S. VAN SCHAIK AND J. DALTON 2004. Where Chan and Tantra meet: Tibetan syncretism in Dunhuang. In S. WHITFIELD (ed.), The Silk Road. Trade Travel, War and Faith. London: the British Library, 63-71.
ABBREVIATIONS
IOL Tib India Office Library Tibetan (now preserved in the British Library)
ITJ IOL Tib J
P The Tibetan Tripi ika: Peking Edition, Kept in the Library of the Otani University, Kyoto. Edited by Daisetz T. Suzuki. Tokyo/Kyoto: Tibetan Tripi ika Research Institute, 1961.
PT Pelliot tibétain (Bibliothèque Nationale de France)
T Taish shinsh daiz ky ŭȽť͕ŭǶ 2The Buddhist Canon Newly Compiled during the Taish Era]. Edited by Takakusu Junjir ėųé˓̤ and Watanabe Kaigyoku ψᇸṽ#i 100 vols. Tokyo: Taish issaiky kank kai, 1924-1935.
Abbreviations used in only a single chapter will be found listed at the end of the chapter in question.
PART ONE
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL HISTORY
DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE: THE ROLE OF DICE IN THE LEGISLATION OF LOANS, INTEREST, MARITAL LAW AND TROOP CONSCRIPTION
Brandon Dotson
Suppose two men at cards with nothing to wager save their lives. Who has not heard such a tale? A turn of the card. The whole universe for such a player has labored clanking to this moment which will tell if he is to die at that man’s hand or that man at his. What more certain validation of a man’s worth could there be? This enhancement of the game to its ultimate state admits no argument concerning the notion of fate. The selection of one man over another is a preference absolute and irrevoc- able and it is a dull man indeed who could reckon so profound a decision without agency or significance either one.—The Judge in Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West, p. 249.
During the period of the Tibetan Empire (c. 600–c. 850), Tibet developed a complex bureaucratic and legal system that supported the paired trends of centralization and the assimilation of conquered territories and peoples. This legal and bureaucratic system also facilitated the levying of troops, the collection of taxes and the legislation of the empire in general. As foreign peoples and their
This chapter is based on a paper presented at the conference ‘Institutions religieuses, civiles et militaires du Tibet: Documents d’Asie Centrale, de Dunhuang et de Mustang’, convened by Prof. Cristina Scherrer-Schaub at the Collège de France, 12 and 13 May 2005. I recognize with gratitude financial assistance received from the Oriental Institute and Wolfson College, both of Oxford, and from the Collège de France for facilitating my attendance at the conference. I would like to offer my thanks to all those who offered comments on my presentation. Particular thanks are due to Dr. Charles Ramble and to Dr. Kazushi Iwao, whose remarks significantly aided the development of my analysis. Further thanks are due to Dr. Bianca Horlemann and Dr. Fernanda Pirie, who commented on early drafts of this chapter, and to Prof. Matthew T. Kapstein, whose insightful comments improved its final form. I am also grateful to Burkhard Quessel at the British Library for his assistance in making the scroll available to me and to Dr. Sam van Schaik of the British Library for providing photographic reproductions of the second half of the scroll. 4 BRANDON DOTSON territories were subjugated, so too were their territorial divinities. This gave rise to a ritual centralization that embraced a growing ‘national’ pantheon of deities, which, together with the cult of the divine emperor and the seasonal sku-bla rituals performed for the well-being of the emperor and the empire, constituted a major part of the ‘state’ religion. The paired trends of political centralization and ritual centralization are evident in a remarkable, hitherto unpublished Old Tibetan legal document from Dunhuang, IOL Tib J 740. This document consists of two texts, the first a mo divination manual, the second a set of questions and answers concerning legal processes. In this chapter I will demonstrate the relationship between these two texts, and situate them within the Tibetan legal tradition. The bulk of the analysis will focus on the second text, and its contribution to our understanding of the social and political organization of the Tibetan Empire. The chapter is divided into three parts. The first part offers a brief introduction to Old Tibetan law in order to locate the document within this tradition. Part two treats the physical features of the document, its orthography and structure. It also underlines the relationship between the divination manual and the legal text, and considers briefly the role of divination in Tibetan law. The third and final part of the chapter is a thematic analysis of the legal text. The main themes under consideration are debt, loans, interest and corvée labour, women and marriage, the legal status of religious estates and the Tibetan system for drafting and provisioning soldiers.
LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE
Before moving on to an examination of this document, it will be useful to briefly consider what we know about the legal culture of the Tibetan Empire. The Old Tang Annals (Jiu Tangshu) states of the Tibetans:
Their punishments are most severe, and even for small crimes the eyes are scooped out, and the nose cut off, or stripes inflicted with a leather whip. They differ according to caprice, there being no fixed code. They imprison men in holes several tens of feet under the ground, and release them only after two or three years (BUSHELL 1880: 411).
While it would be hasty to dismiss this Chinese account altogether, it may be said that this statement is either an uninformed and DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 5 chauvinist account of a barbarian people or describes a very early stage in Tibetan legal culture. Fragmentary Old Tibetan documents from Dunhuang paint a far more complex picture of legal practices in Tibet. Law, and the ‘good law’ in particular, was a key element of the Tibetan Emperor’s divine inheritance and his earthly legitimation. Simultaneously, Tibetan imperial law, assisted by bureaucracy and a large corps of officials, codified and legislated the emerging foundations of the Tibetan polity. Legislation and the imposition of political order were regarded as essential values in a Tibetan ruler long before they constituted part of the legacy of the religious kings of the empire as eulogized in Tibetan religious histories. Many of the earliest surviving Old Tibetan documents concerning the Tibetan ruler, the Btsan-po, glorify him because of his practice of ‘good (religious) customs and great art of government’ (chos-bzang gtsug-lag che). 1 Such considerations are present in numerous passages of the Old Tibetan Chronicle, an epic history whose political imperatives were to eulogize the Tibetan royal line and to idealize and glorify the principles by which the emperors ruled. This entailed a presentation of the Tibetan Emperor as an ordering principle instantiating the ways of heaven upon the earth, and bringing law and order to the Tibetan people. This is evident in the victory songs exchanged by Khri Srong-brtsan (later known as Srong-btsan Sgam-po) (c. 605- 649), and his prime minister, Mgar Stong-rtsan, after their defeat of Zhang-zhung.
Above, the profound lord, Khri Srong-brtsan. Below, the wise minister Stong-rtsan Yul-zung. Endowed with all the conditions of great majesty (mnga’-thang), the lord, [acting] in the manner of the heavenly mountain gods, and the minister, [acting] in the manner of the earthly majesty (ngam-len), externally increased the polity in the four directions. The internal welfare (kha-bso) 2 was abundant and undiminished. They created parity between the high and the low among the black-headed subjects [Tibetans]. They reduced tax fraud and created leisure. They swore [oaths] in the autumn and spring and adhered to this cycle. They gave to the needy and cut out the harmful.
1 For a discussion of these topics, see STEIN 2003 [1985]: 534-39, 560. 2 The term literally means, ‘to nourish mouths’, which translates well enough the English ‘welfare’. The term ‘welfare’ (kha-bso) may also be related to the term khab-so, which is found in the Old Tibetan Annals and other legal and bureaucratic sources, where it is most often taken to mean ‘revenue office’ in a broad sense. Alternatively, kha-bso may just be an error for kha-bsod, meaning ‘good fortune’. 6 BRANDON DOTSON
They employed the powerful and degraded the insolent (sdo-ba). They quashed the frightened and allied with the truthful. They praised the wise and respected the heroic. They employed the devoted. The customs being good and the polity lofty (chos bzang srId mtho ste), all men were happy. Previously in Tibet, there was no writing, but it was during the time of this Btsan-po—from the reign of Btsan-po Khri Srong-brtsan— that the entire good basis of Tibet’s customs (bod kyi chos kyi gzhung bzang-po kun) was created: Tibet’s great legal and governmental system (bod kyi gtsug-lag bka’-grims ched-po), the [system of] ministerial rank, the division of ranks (dbang-thang) into both great and small, the rewards for the good, the punishments for the wicked and deceitful, the equal division of fields and pasturelands into thul-ka, dor- ka and slungs, and the standardization of the weights and measures bre, p[h]ul and srang, etc. All men felt a great gratitude for his kindness and in return they called him ‘Srong-brtsan the profound’ (Srong-btsan Sgam-po).
bla na rje sgam na / khrI srong brtsan / ’og na blon ’dzangs na stong rtsan yul zung / rje nI gnam ri pywa ’I lugs / / blon po ni sa ’I ngam len gyi tshul / / mnga’ thang chen po ’i rkyen du / jI dang jir ldan te / pyi ’i chab srid nI pyogs bzhIr bskyed / / nang gI kha bso ni myi nyams par lhun stug / ’bangs mgo nag po yang mtho dman nI bsnyams / dpya’ sgyu nI bskyungs / dal du nI mchis / ston dpyid nI bskyal / / ’khor bar nI spyad / ’dod pa nI byin / gnod pa nI pye / btsan ba nI bcugs / sdo ba ni smad / ’jigs pa nI mnan / / bden pa nI bsnyen / ’dzangs pa nI bstod / dpa’ bo nI bkur / smon par nI bkol / / chos bzang srId mtho ste / / myI yongs kyis skyid do / / bod la snga na yI ge myed pa yang / / btsan po ’di ’I tshe byung nas / / bod kyi gtsug lag bka’ grims ched po dang / blon po ’i rim pa dang / che chung gnyis kyI dbang thang dang / legs pa zin pa ’I bya dga’ dang / nye yo ba ’i chad pa dang / zhing ’brog gi thul ka dang dor ka dang / slungs kyi go bar bsnyams pa dang / bre pul dang / srang la stsogs pa / / bod kyi chos kyi gzhung bzang po kun / / btsan po khri srong brtsan gyi ring las byung ngo / myi yongs kyis bka’ drin dran zhing tshor bas / / srong brtsan sgam po zhes gsol to (PT 1287, 446-455).3
As is evident from this passage of the Old Tibetan Chronicle, there was a tradition in early Tibet that ascribed legal and bureaucratic reforms to Srong-btsan Sgam-po. The measures described in this
3 For the Tibetan text, see CD2: pl. 574. For transliteration, see CD3: 33-34. For a French translation of this passage that differs considerably from my own, see BACOT et al 1940-46: 160-61. See also Kapstein’s analysis of the second paragraph of this passage (KAPSTEIN 2000: 55). DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 7 passage as ‘the entire good basis of Tibet’s customs’ (bod kyi chos kyi gzhung bzang-po kun) would have been codified in legal and bureaucratic manuals (dkar-chag/rtsis-mgo).4 Indeed the existence of such manuals is mentioned in the Dba’ bzhed: Srong-btsan Sgam- po, after admonishing his subjects that if they did not follow his newly codified system of laws, then Tibet would become like the twelve minor kingdoms (rgyal-phran) that were defeated due to their internal chaos and lawlessness, announced to them the complete manuals (rtsis-mgo) and the good law (chos-lugs bzang-po) (WANGDU AND DIEMBERGER 2000: 28-29). Beyond its insights into Tibetan political theory, the above passage from the Old Tibetan Chronicle may be related to the measures laconically described in the best-known reference to the creation of Tibetan law and administration. This is found in the Old Tibetan Annals, the single most reliable source for early Tibetan history. The entries for the years 654 and 655 are as follows:
[654] The year of the tiger arriving. The Btsan-pho resided at Mer- khe and Prime Minister Stong-rtsan convened [the council] at Mong-pu Sral-’dzong. He divided the military (rgod) and the civilians (g.yung) and made the manual of the great administration (mkho-sham chen- pho). So one year. [655] The year of the hare arriving. The Btsan-po resided at Mer- khe and Prime Minister Stong-rtsan wrote the texts of the law (bka’- grims) at ’Gor-ti. So one year.
# / : / stagI lo la bab ste / btsan pho mer khe na’ bzhugs shIng / blon che stong rtsan gyis / mong pu sral ’dzong du’ bsduste / rgod g.yung dbye zhing / mkho sham chen pho bgyI ba’I rtsis mgo bgyI bar lo gchIg / # / : / yos bu’I lo la bab ste’ / / btsan po mer khe na bzhugs shing / blon che stong rtsan gyIs / ’gor tIr / bka’ / grIms gyI yi ge brIs phar lo gchig / (PT 1288, ll. 26-29.)5
This passage states unequivocally that the Tibetan Empire developed legal and administrative texts in 654 and 655. While the contents of these texts are not revealed, this testifies to the fact that Tibet possessed a codified system of law at a very early date in its development.
4 The passage itself may refer to a textual source for ‘the entire good basis of Tibet’s customs’ (bod kyi chos kyi gzhung bzang-po kun), if we take gzhung, which I have translated here as ‘basis’, instead to mean ‘fundamental texts’. 5 For text, see CD2: pl. 580. For transliteration, see CD3: 40. For Bacot and Toussaint’s French translation, see BACOT et al 1940-46: 31. 8 BRANDON DOTSON
Moving beyond theoretical concerns and the origins of Tibetan legal culture, several Old Tibetan documents shed light on legal practice. From the fragmentary legal texts that survived in Dunhuang, it is evident that the Tibetan Empire developed a highly codified system of law that meted out punishments according to the social class of the complainant and that of the defendant in a given case. This is seen most explicitly in PT 1071, a document dealing mainly with blood money or restitution when someone is accidentally shot with an arrow during the course of a hunt. RICHARDSON (1998 [1990]) outlined this text in some detail, and the gradations of punishment according to class are clearly given in his work. The table below is a simplified account that shows the amount of blood money due to each victim according to the victim’s rank. These ranks also include certain of the victims’ kin relations, but this is too complicated to detail here. It should be noted that blood money is not always acceptable: if one of the four great ministers, for example, is killed by someone in ranks eight through ten, the killer is executed, his male descendants are put to death, and his property is confiscated according to the sgor-rabs-gcad death penalty (RICHARDSON 1998 [1990]: 151). Punishment therefore depends both on the class of the assailant and that of the victim. For the sake of clarity, the compensation prices listed in the table below correspond to the price that is paid when the assailant is of an equal or higher rank in relation to the deceased victim.
Table 1: Blood money/ compensation price (stong-mnyam/ myi-stong) according to PT 1071.
Rank Compensation Price 1 Four great ministers6 10,000 2 Turquoise rank 6,000 3 Gold rank 5,000 4 Gold-plated silver (phra-men) 4,000 rank7
6 The four great ministers are: the prime minister, the great minister of the interior, the Btsan-po’s maternal uncle in charge of political affairs (btsan po’i zhang drung chab srid la dbang ba), and the deputy prime minister (DOTSON 2004: 81). 7 DUNG-DKAR (2002: 1359) considers phra-men to be an ‘alloy of silver and gold’, but it can be translated more precisely with reference to a passage in the New Tang Annals (Xin Tangshu) regarding the order of rank. BUSHELL (1880: 442) translates the passage as follows. ‘The officers in full costume wear as ornaments— DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 9
5 Silver rank 3,000 6 Brass rank 2,000 7 Copper rank 1,000 8 Gtsang-chen, royal military 300 subjects, bondservants attached to the fields of an aristocrat or a commoner, governor’s attaché (rgyal-’bangs rgod-do-’tshal dang zhang-lon [dang] dmangs kyi bran rkya la gtogs-pa dang mngan gyi mngan-lag) (ll. 247- 51) 9 Civilian royal subjects, 200 bondservants attached to the fields of an aristocrat or commoner, barbarian prisoners (lho-bal btson-pa) (ll. 288-89)
As I have written elsewhere, the main divide in Tibetan class society is between the ministerial aristocracy (zhang-lon, dku-rgyal, yi-ge- pa), represented by groups one through seven, and the commoners (dmangs), represented by groups eight and nine (DOTSON 2004: 81- 82). The break begins with the gtsang-chen, which, like other designations such as ‘silver rank minister’, describes a rank, and not a post. However, gtsang-chen does not appear to indicate a type of insignia. This is evident from PT 1089, where a man appointed ‘great official of fields in general’ (spyi’i zhing-pon ched-po) is described
those of the highest rank ze-ze [ƶƶ sè sè], the next gold, then gilded silver, then silver, and the lowest copper—which hang in large and small strings from the shoulder, and distinguish the rank of the wearer.’ Cf. PELLIOT 1961: 80. The description corresponds exactly to those found in PT 1071, PT 1072 and PT 1073, save for the omission of brass (ra-gan) between the ranks of silver and copper, and it further indicates that the Tibetan insignia (yig-tshang/ yi-ge) can be considered to be akin to epaulets. We can note that se-se, meaning something like ‘aquamarine’, probably indicates turquoise. Here ‘gilded silver’ (ƞġ$ j n tú yín) means ‘silver coated with gold’, and should therefore be rendered more accurately as ‘gold-plated silver’. This corresponds to the Tibetan phra-men, thus clarifying an obscure term. On the close correspondence between the precious metals employed in both Tibetan and Chinese insignia of rank, see DEMIÉVILLE 1952: 284-86, n. 2. 10 BRANDON DOTSON as having the rank (thabs) of a gtsang-chen.8 PT 1071 goes on to deal with other issues arising from the hunt, such as a case where someone is trapped under a yak, and this again is decided according to the rank of the victim and the rank of the bystander (RICHARDSON 1998 [1990]: 156-59).9 Similar standardized payments of blood money according to class are recorded in the ‘Section on Law and State’, a chapter found in several post-dynastic histories, which purports to describe the legal and administrative practices of the Tibetan Empire (Lde’u: 264; KhG: 378).10 Subsequent Tibetan administrations, such as those of the Dalai Lamas, followed a similar model of standardized payments, but their legal stratification of society differed significantly from the earlier models, due in part to the influence of Buddhism (FRENCH 1995: 114; CASSINELLI AND EKVALL 1969: 178).11 The actual form of the trial in the case of these hunting accidents is very interesting, as ‘jurors’ (gtsang-dkar) play a prominent role. In the legal document PT 1071, when one from the rank of the turquoise, gold or gold-plated silver ministerial aristocracy (ranks 2- 4) is accused of shooting, while hunting, one among the highest rank in the ministerial aristocracy (rank 1), the trial proceeds as follows:
Whether [the victim] is killed or not, and there is enmity and it is said that punishment shall never be excused, twelve jurors (gtsang-dkar), with he [the complainant?] himself making thirteen, swear an oath, and the case is decided according to the law of homicide (thong-myi) in the various manuals (dkar-chag). It is not granted that one repay blood money [at this point]. The jurors try him, [and if] the man hit by the
8 ‘LI pu hwar is appointed the great official of fields in general. He is of gtsang- chen rank.’ (lI pu hwar spyi’i zhing pon ched por bskoste// thabs gtsang chen mchis pa/) (PT 1089, l. 61). 9 For an analysis of rank and status in Tibetan imperial society that relies mostly on PT 1071 and the Mkhas pa’i dga’ ston of Dpa’-bo Gtsug-lag phreng-ba (hereafter, KhG), see GNYA’-GONG 2003. 10 The ‘Section on Law and State’ as it is found in its three main versions in the Rgya bod kyi chos ’byung rgyas pa of Mkhas-pa Lde’u (hereafter abbreviated Lde’u), the Chos ’byung chen po bstan pa’i rgyal mtshan of Lde’u Jo-sras, and KhG, explicitly claims to be related to the legal and administrative reforms of Srong-btsan Sgam-po. As TUCCI (1956: 76), URAY (1972: 67-68), UEBACH (1989: 831) and GNYA’-GONG (2003: 227) have each pointed out, large parts of the ‘Section on Law and State’ relate not to this emperor’s reign, but to the reigns of several other Tibetan Emperors. The comparison of the ‘Section on Law and State’ with Old Tibetan sources forms the basis of DOTSON 2006. 11 For similar traditions of blood money among Tibetan nomads, and comparable social hierarchies, see EKVALL 1954. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 11
arrow was killed, then they impose blood money (myi-stong) of 10,000 srang, and half is the share of the complainant (yus-bdag), the other half that of his associate (’dam-po). If there is no associate, 10,000 srang is the share of the complainant. If the one hit by the arrow does not die, then they impose blood money of 5,000 srang and half is the share of the complainant, the other half that of his associate (’dam-po). If there is no associate, 5,000 srang is the share of the complainant. When one is hit by an arrow and the accused says, ‘it was not my arrow,’ and his denial is not accepted, whether the person hit by the arrow was killed or not, the law of homicide is applied. If the denial is upheld, as it is also slander (skur-pa zan), it becomes a case of false accusation of homicide.
gum yang rung ma gum yang rung/ mkhon mchis te chad/ kar ’phangs re zhes/ gtsang dkar bcu gnyis dang kho na bdag dang bcu gsum/ bro stsaldo/ dkar chagsna/ thong myi/ dang khrims gcig go/ stong ’jaldu yang myi gnango/ dkar gyis changs tang/ mda’ phogs pa’ gum dang/ myI stong/ srang khri babste/ yus bdag dang/ ’dam po phyed mar dbango/ ’dam po ma mchis na/ srang khri yus bdag dbango/ mda’s phogs pa/ ma gum na/ gson stong srang lnga stong phabste/ yus bdag dang ’dam po phyed mar dbango/ ’dam po ma mchis na/ srang lnga stong kun yus bdag dbango/ /mdas phogste/ nga’I mda’ ma yIn ces snyon snyon ma changste/ mdas/ phogs gum yang rung ma gum/ yang rung/ thong myi dang khrims gcIgo/ snyon snyon pa tshangs12 dang/ skur pa zan kyang/ thong myi’i skur pa zan dang khrims gcig du 13 dbango/ (PT 1071, ll. 8-15).
The ceremony involved in this trial, like those of the other types of trials mentioned above, involves the swearing of an oath. Though oaths of loyalty to the emperor and oaths to uphold the Buddhist religion are quite common in Old Tibetan sources, their frequency should not be taken as an indication of triviality. Sacrifice was a key element of Tibetan oath taking rituals, and, if the Tang Annals are to be believed, this sometimes involved the sacrifice of a human being (BUSHELL 1880: 441). This would make such oaths a terrifying experience. In the case above, those who take the oath are the twelve ‘jurors’ (gtsang-dkar), and ‘he himself, making thirteen’ which likely refers to the complainant. This is significant, because the numeric formula ‘twelve plus one, making thirteen’ signifies totality, and thus marks off the ‘jurors’ as an explicit microcosm of Tibetan
12 Read changs. 13 See also RICHARDSON 1998 [1990]: 150. 12 BRANDON DOTSON society.14 Though the outcome of the trial will be compensation from one party to the other, it is tempting to see in the structure of this trial the concept of a crime against society. In this case, the ‘jurors’ are the ones who decide the case and award the requisite blood money. Further, they also seem to have the power to accept or reject any denials of guilt. This case may differ from the others as it occurs during the context of the hunt, which was a state affair sometimes involving thousands of people. However, in as much as the hunt reveals itself as a sort of meta-society involving all strata of Tibetan society in a performative event, the legal clauses may be quite consistent with those found elsewhere.15
14 This same numeric formula of twelve plus one making thirteen is employed in the catalogue of minor kingdoms (rgyal-phran) in PT 1286: ‘The twelve minor kings, with Se-re-khri makes thirteen. The twenty-four ministers, with Skyang-re- gnag makes twenty-five. The twelve strongholds, with Dbu-lde Dam-pa makes thirteen. The twelve territories, with Byang-ka Snam-brgyad makes thirteen.’ (rgyal pran bcu gnyis na / se re khri dang bcu gsum / blon po nyI shu rtsa bzhi na / skyang re gnag dang nyi shu rtsa lnga / mkhar bcu gnyis na / dbu lde dam pa dang bcu gsum / yul bcu gnyIs na / byang ka snam brgyad dang bcu gsum. PT 1286, ll. 22-24, in CD2: pl. 555, CD3: 14). The same formula is found in the recitation of the (twelve plus one equals) thirteen kings in PT 1060, a ritual recitation dealing mainly with horses. ‘The twelve kings, with Se-ra-gri makes thirteen. The twenty-four ministers, with Skyang-re-gnag makes twenty-five. The twelve territories (read yul for ’a yu), with Hod gyi Se-mo gru makes thirteen. The twelve strongholds, with Dbu-ste Ngam-pa-ra makes thirteen.’ (rgya po bcu gnyIs na se ra grI dang bcu gsum blon po nyi shu rtsa bzhi na’ / / skyang re gnag dang nyishu rtsa lnga ’a yu bcu gnyis na’ hod gyi [se] mo gru dang bcu gsum / / mkhar bcu gnyis na’ dbu ste ngam pa ra dang bcu gsum. PT 1060, ll. 94-96, in CD2: pl. 371, CD4: 29). These thirteen minor kingdoms were a vision of the totality of the known world, and were usually invoked as such in a ritual context. The scheme was also used in the formulation of the border taming temples, in which the Jo-khang was supported by three groups of four temples in the cardinal directions (SØRENSEN et al 2005: 172). For more on the significance of the numbers twelve and thirteen as symbols of totality, see DOTSON forthcoming a; STEIN 1961a: 9-10 and EKVALL 1959. 15 The miscellanea at the end of the document also concern the proper butchering and distribution of the animal. The act of dividing the kill and partitioning it among the community reveals which parts of the animal were considered most desirable. This is reminiscent, of course, of sacrifice, where different quarters of the animal are invested with a highly stratified sense of meaning and are matched with the various members of the community according to status. The sacrifice of the animal and the distribution of its body thus establishes commensality, while it also reinforces the social hierarchy. Just as in one of Sad- mar-kar’s songs in the Old Tibetan Chronicle the fallen yak is a symbol of Zhang- zhung, the killed animal and the protocols for its proper distribution are foundational metaphors for Tibetan society and its hierarchies (ALLEN 1978 and MACDONALD DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 13
Another fascinating element of the legal clauses in PT 1071 is the role of the complainant’s ‘associate’ (’dam-po). In his reading of this same Old Tibetan document, Btsan-lha Ngag-dbang Tshul-khrims defines the ’dam-po as ‘one who reveals hidden crimes’ (lkog tu nyes skyon ther ’don byed mkhan), or, in other words, a prosecutor (BTSAN-LHA 1997: 363). Whether Btsan-lha reads too far into this or not, this passage does confirm the existence of legal professionals during the period of the Tibetan Empire. The ‘associate’, who is entitled to half of the compensation payment, would likely not have been a mediator, but someone with knowledge of the law who was able to make a case before the jurors and influence the proceedings through his savoir-faire and eloquence. This is not to say that the ‘associate’ held the occupational equivalent of a modern lawyer or barrister; he may well have simply been an important and influential local figure with some knowledge of the law. Another legal document involving animals, this time of the domestic variety, concerns the protocols for punishing those whose dogs attack passers-by. This text, PT 1073, has also been studied by Richardson, and like the laws surrounding the hunt, it decides punishment according to the social classes of the accuser and the defendant (RICHARDSON 1998 [1989]: 136-37). The only difference is that the document also mentions cases in which the defendant is a woman. Lines 14-15 set out the legal punishment for a woman from silver rank to copper rank who sets a dog on a person holding the more prestigious gold-plated silver (phra-men) rank:
If a married woman sets a dog [on someone of gold-plated silver rank] and it kills him, all of whatever was given by her own original paternal family will be awarded as compensation for the killed man. (bud myed khyo mcis/ pa’ zhig / khyi sbod sbod de/ bkum na/ mo ’da’ gdod ma’/ pa mying gyIs/ cis brtsangs16 pa’/ kund gum pa’I stong du stsald do).17
Here it is evident that the woman must give the accuser the bride- wealth that was bestowed on her by her paternal family when she left her paternal home to live with her husband. This of course serves the same end as deciding a case according to social class, as women from upper class families most likely possessed more bride-wealth than those from lower class families. Further, this is but one of the
1980). Like sacrifice, the hunt is a ceremony encoded with the structures of Tibetan society (HAZOD 2000: 218-21). 16 Read brdzangs. 17 See also the translation in RICHARDSON 1998 [1989]: 137. 14 BRANDON DOTSON many instances where Old Tibetan legal texts reveal important information concerning the social structure of the empire. Aside from adding more weight to the assumption that virilocal marriage was common practice in imperial Tibet, this valuable passage also indicates that the p[h]a-mying, that is, father and [elder] brothers, as wife-givers, gave bride-wealth to be taken with the bride to her new husband’s family. That such bride-wealth was still available to the woman to pay the compensation price for her crime indicates that the bride-wealth was likely her own inalienable property and not a gift to her husband or to his family. Two Old Tibetan documents, PT 1075 and IOL Tib J 753, detail the proper punishment for theft. Here the punishment depends not upon the class of the thief (who, as a thief, is probably assumed to be of low class), but upon the class of his victim and the amount stolen. According to IOL Tib J 753, a document edited and translated by THOMAS (1936), a thief was met with banishment or death depending on the value of his haul. The following table shows the punishments that apply when thieves are caught red-handed trying to take riches from a treasury.
Table 2: Punishment for a thief caught in a treasury according to IOL Tib J 753 (ll. 12-32)
Amount (srang) Punishment 100 and upwards Thief and all accomplices are killed 99-80 Three ringleaders (rab mgo [sic?]) are killed; others are banished to a hinterland (pho reng du spyug go).18 79-60 Two ringleaders (ra bgo pa) are killed; others are banished to a hinterland. 59-40 One ringleader is killed; others are banished to a distant place (shul ring-por spyug go). 39-20 Ringleader thief is banished to a distant place; others are banished to a middle road
18 THOMAS (1936: 283) translated rab-mgo (pa)/ ra-bgo (pa) as ‘principal heads’, a reading supported by GO-SHUL (2001: 388, n. 2). Thomas’ translation of pho-reng du spyug as ‘to be banished, after castration’ can probably be disregarded. My provisional translation of pho-reng is uncertain, however, as it is based mostly on analogy with the following clauses and taken therefore to refer not to a condition, but to a degree of distance. The classical Tibetan meaning of pho-reng is ‘bachelor’, so an alternate translation, reading pho-reng du adverbially, would be ‘they banished him alone.’ DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 15
(i.e., an outlying area, lam ’bring-por spyug go). 19-10 Ringleader thief is banished to a middle road. A rkud of two srang is levied on the accomplices.19 9 and downwards Whatever thieves are caught receive a rkud of two srang.
#/// phyag mdzod do ’tshald gyi nang du/ rkun po zhugs pa las / lag tu ma thob par zin pa’i khrims la//// bla’i pyag mdzod do ’tsald gyi nang du / rkun po zhig zhugste / dkor lag du ma tob par zind na dkor srang brgya yan chad gyi khra zhig / mcis pa’i nang du / zhugs te zind na / rkun po mang gtogs nyung gtogs pa / kun dgumo /// srang dgu bchu dgu man chad / brgyad chu mchis pa yan chad // gyi nang du zhugste zind na rkun po du gtogs gyang rung / rab mgo gsum dgumo/// gzhan ni pho reng du phyug go /// srang bdun chu dgu man chad // drug chu yan chad mcis pa zhig gi nang du zhugste / zind na’ / rkun po du gthogs gyan20 rung/ ra bgo pa gnyis dgumo // gzhan ni pho reng du spyugo /// srang lnga bchu dgu man chad / bzhi bchu mchis pa yan chad chig yi nang du zhugs te // lag du ma thob par zind na / rkun po du gtogs gyang rung ra bgo pa gchig dgumo /// gzhan ni shul ring por spyug go/ srang sum chu dgu man chad // nyi shu yan chad mchis pa’i nang du // zhugste / zind na / rkun po ra bgo pa gchig shul ring por spyugo// gzhan du mchis pa lam ’bring por spyug go // srang bchu dgu man chad / bchu yan chad mchis pa’i nang du zhugs te lag du ma thob par zind na / rkun po ra bdo pa gchig ni / lam ’bring por spyugo// slad na [bos ro] rkun po du mchis pa la / srang nyis gyi rkud da dbabo / srang dgu man/ chad mchis pa’i nang du / zhugs te / lag du ma thob par zind na / rkun po du mchis pa la / srang chig gyi rkud dbab ’o /// (IOL Tib J 753, ll. 16-30; THOMAS 1936: 278-79).
This section of the text closes by stating: ‘In accordance with the law (bka’-grims), the riches and wealth of the executed or banished thief is granted as a reward to the one who caught him.’ (’dzin ’dzin pa’i bya dgar ni rkun po bkum ba dang spyugs pa’i nor pyugs dang / chal phab pa las / bka’ grims bzhin du stshald to / phyag rgya’o //) (IOL Tib J 753, ll. 30-32). Here again, as in the case of the trials following from hunting accidents, the complainant has a vested interest in
19 THOMAS (1936: 283) translated rkud as ‘penalty’, which, along with ‘fine’, seems an acceptable provisional translation. 20 Read gyang. 16 BRANDON DOTSON prosecuting the defendant, because success will result in economic reward. The distinction in the above clauses between the ringleader (ra bgo pa) and his accomplices, and the according differences in punishment, are also found in subsequent Tibetan legal traditions (CASSINELLI AND EKVALL 1969: 169-70).21 The text goes on to detail the punishments for those who steal items of wealth from the authority (bla) down to the ministerial aristocracy (zhang-lon) and commoners (dmangs) (ll. 33-42); punishments for those who steal from the authority (bla) itself (ll. 57-63); and punishments for those who steal from the wealth of an empress, royal lady, princess (btsan-mo lcam-sru dang jo-mo), or ministerial aristocrat, down to that of a commoner (ll. 64-72). The language in the clauses of PT 1075 is almost identical with that of IOL Tib J 753, but the clauses generally deal with much smaller amounts. As this text is so similar in character to IOL Tib J 753, it is not necessary to describe it in any detail here. Both texts are particularly interesting in that they mention a group of royal ladies, the btsan-mo, lcam-sru and jo-mo, apparently in descending order of rank.22 Here again the Old Tibetan legal fragments reveal their sociological value. Aside from these cases that were decided either by a ‘jury’ or according to a legal code, there appear also to have been what one might call ‘capital offenses’. These were decided by the Btsan-po himself. This is demonstrated by the entry in the Old Tibetan Annals for the sheep year 695. Mgar Gung-rton, a member of the Mgar clan with whom the emperor will soon be openly at war, is found to be disloyal, and the text states: ‘They held Mgar Gung-rton’s trial (zhal- ce dbyangs) at Sha-tsal, the Btsan-po made a pronouncement at Nyen-kar Lcang-bu, and Gung-rton was killed’ (sha tsal du mgar gung rton gyI zhal ce dbyangs nas / nyen kar lcang bur btsan poe bkas bcade/ gung rton bkum) (IOL Tib J 750, ll. 69-70; BACOT et al 1940-46: 18, 38). While this demonstrates that the Btsan-po could decide a trial directly, this probably only occurred in cases of particularly great importance. Further, this particular case may be seen as an attempt by Emperor ’Dus-srong (r. 676-704) to demon-
21 See also the discussion of this practice in Old Tibetan law in HOR-DKAR 2003 [1989]: 314-15. 22 On these terms and their possible rank order according to their employment in the Old Tibetan Annals, see UEBACH 1997: 54-55. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 17 strate his authority by not allowing the Mgar clan to decide the case internally. In reading these documents and establishing a typology of legal culture in the Tibetan Empire, it must be borne in mind that these fragmentary documents do not reflect reports or minutes of actual cases. They tell us about Tibetan legal theory, which may not necessarily correspond to legal practice. We cannot say how these laws and practices were implemented and to what extent they pervaded the entire empire. Reading these various legal fragments and noting their consistency, however, one wonders if they were taken from a larger legal manual of the type mentioned in the Old Tibetan Annals, or if, perhaps, they were compiled in order to create such a manual for the local area of Dunhuang. With the benefit of just this cursory look at a few fragments of Old Tibetan legal literature, it is evident that the Tibetan Empire possessed a codified set (or sets) of laws and that many of the elements of subsequent Tibetan legal culture were already present at a very early stage. In the case of compensation for injury and blood money, legal cases take the form of a dispute between two parties that proceeds according to the norms of the relevant legal statutes concerning both the form of the trial and the proper punishment. Likewise, in the case of theft, the legal statutes decide the appropriate punishment, and the thief’s or thieves’ apprehender, in this case the victim, receives the monetary reward of the thief’s or thieves’ wealth after execution or banishment. While it is fair to assume that the government carried out the punishment of the guilty, whether execution or banishment, this is not made explicit in the clauses themselves. In some cases, such as the trial of Mgar Gung- rton, this is explicitly not a dispute between two parties, but a punishment handed down by the emperor himself. Most of these legal practices, particularly blood money, compensation money, and punishment according to the social class of those involved in a dispute, are taken up in later Tibetan legal traditions. As will soon become evident, early Tibetan law shared another common feature with subsequent Tibetan legal systems: trial by divination.
CHANCE AND DIVINATION IN EARLY TIBETAN LAW: IOL TIB J 740
The present legal document, IOL Tib J 740, sheds further light on legal practices in imperial Tibet. In particular, it reveals that legal 18 BRANDON DOTSON decisions were made in a centralized, systematized arrangement of chance. Before moving on to the contents of the text itself, I will first comment on the form of the text and some of its more interesting orthographic features.
The Physical Features of the Document
IOL Tib J 740 consists of a long scroll (849cm X 26cm) containing Chinese on the recto and Tibetan on the verso. The Chinese text is the Suvar aprabh sottamas trendrar jas tra in 473 columns. The Tibetan side of the scroll contains two separate but related texts, both of them complete. The first, which comprises the first 237 lines, concerns mo divination, and the second consists of 122 lines containing various replies given to legal questions arising from the implementation of a new legal edict. Both texts appear to have been written by the same hand and both employ the same style of punctuation. The text is written in dbu-can script in faded black ink, with no ornamentation, and there is some creasing and fraying near the edges of the scroll. It bears no official seal. The divination text is far more tattered than the legal text, revealing that it was consulted more frequently. The Tibetan texts cover only about three quarters of the verso, while the Chinese takes up nearly the entire recto. There is no Tibetan on the recto.
A Note on Orthography
Before moving on to a treatment of the contents of this document, I would like to point out some of its orthographic peculiarities. Alternation between aspirated and unaspirated consonants, the use of pe’i or pe in place of pa’i, and the use of the ya-btags are all common, as is the use of reverse gi-gu and the indiscriminate gi-gu (transliterated ‘î’).23 The text employs only gi/gis and gyi/gyis as genetive, instrumentive and agentive particles; there is no use of kyi/kyis following d, b or s suffixes, which are instead followed by gyi/gyis. Another feature of the text is a duplication of syllables appearing at the end of the line: the last syllable of a line is often repeated as the first syllable of the next line where there is no
23 This is described in MILLER 1966: 264. Miller transcribed it ‘i?’ and took it to be a result of laziness on the part of the scribe. On the possible phonological value of the Old Tibetan gi-gu and reverse gi-gu see also Ulving’s review article of MILLER 1966 (ULVING 1972: 209-15) and Miller’s subsequent rebuttal (MILLER 1981). DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 19 grammatical reason to do so. This is merely a formal practice, and should not be read as a grammatical duplication. Also, it is very difficult to distinguish the ba from the pa, since the ba is never completely closed at the top. These are all rather commonplace in Old Tibetan, but the use of the tsheg in this text, both double and single, warrants comment. The double tsheg predominates throughout the text, but the single tsheg is usually employed after ng, d, n and r suffixes. Examining the text with this in mind, it is evident that the use of double and single tsheg in the document was not due to the whimsy of the scribe, but followed a specific pattern. This is obviously due to space considerations: those letters with long ‘tails’ are followed by a single, instead of a double tsheg, because the ‘tail’ gets in the way of the lower of the two dots in the double tsheg. This is particularly evident in a few cases where the scribe has placed the two dots of the double tsheg on either side of the ‘tail’ of an n suffix. One problem in transcribing the pattern concerns the ng suffix: since the scribe ends his stroke at the end of the ‘tail’, this creates an ink dot that appears to be a shorthand way of writing the lower of the two dots in the double tsheg. Other samples of early Tibetan writing, such as the Zhol Inscription, employ the double and single tsheg according to a similar pattern. Here, too, this is probably for space considerations, but the writing in IOL Tib J 740 follows the pattern more closely than do most other Tibetan texts. The single tsheg is employed approximately 75% of the time after ng, n, d and r ‘suffixes’, but is used only about 5% of the time otherwise. This is either due to the peculiarities of our scribe’s writing, or it suggests that such a punctuation system had been systematized within certain corners of bureaucratic practice, in which case it may prove to be a useful tool for dating Old Tibetan writing. In presenting the Old Tibetan text, I have transliterated it as it appears in the original documents and made as few corrections as possible in order to retain the older orthographies and irregularities. I have not bothered to correct some of the more obvious liaisons, such as stagi for stag gi, be’i for ba’i, or lagste for lags te. Likewise, I have left untouched most variants between aspirated and unaspirated consonants and also retained attested variant spellings such as sla ~ zla or brtsad ~ brtsan. Glosses that are not otherwise obvious are given in the footnotes, along with unclear readings. The original punctuation is retained in the transliteration of the second text in IOL Tib J 740 at the end of this chapter, but has been removed from the quotations in the body of the chapter for ease of presentation. Further editing conventions are as follows: 20 BRANDON DOTSON
I Reverse gi-gu. î Indiscriminate gi-gu. [abc] Intentional deletions in the original. abcabcabc Text intercalated below line.
The Structure of the Document
In the past, most researchers have concentrated on one or the other text in IOL Tib J 740, but never both. Though most of the present analysis concerns the legal text that forms the second part of the document, I wish to demonstrate that the two texts contained in this document are in fact related. Let us turn first to the mo divination manual. To my knowledge, F.W. Thomas was the first to comment on the text, but he mentioned only the first half of the text dealing with mo divination (THOMAS 1957: 140).24 Thomas recognised the structure of the text and its similarity to the other divination documents he analysed: each paragraph was preceded by three sets of small circles, each set containing between one to four circles, indicating the scores of three dice rolls. These dice rolls resulted from throwing three four-sided dice, of the rectangular variety that were found in Miran and Mazar Tagh (STEIN 1907: pl. LXXIV, n. xv. 004).
This creates 64 possible combinations, each of which corresponds to one of the entries in the divination book consulted. The mo divination manual could also be consulted with recourse to pebbles, and this is evident in the introductory formula to several passages that begin ‘if the pebble jumps.’.. (rdi phur te) (l. 115).
24 The divination text has since been treated in greater detail in GESANG 2005. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 21
Thomas stated that the mo text in IOL Tib J 740 consisted of 63 paragraphs in 236 lines (THOMAS 1957: 140). In point of fact, there are 62 paragraphs: the mo for the combinations 4 1 2 and 4 3 2 are missing. Further, the text consists of 237 lines, as is evident from the critical editing of Nishida and Ishikawa for OTDO.25 The types of prognostications found in the various paragraphs in IOL Tib J 740 are consistent with those in other Old Tibetan divin- ation texts.26 These were usually consulted for a specific purpose, such as a medical prognosis. The substance of the divination results themselves is rather vague, being generally good or bad, but rarely specified with reference to any given set of circumstances. This is presumably by design, as it gives the diviner some leeway to interpret the results according to the situation. A translation of two examples should suffice to demonstrate the general character of the divinations.
4 1 4: From the mouth of the road god (Lam-lha): You, human! The gods look upon you with compassion! If you have cast this [divination] for a legal trial (zhal-ces), you will be free. If you go trading, your trading will prevail. Not thinking in [your] heart, ‘I am clever,’ you should honour the gods and your heart’s desire will be fulfilled. This is a good prognosis (mo). (4 1 4 : // lam lha’I zhal nas myI khyodlhas thugs rje gzIgste / zhal ces btab na yang / thar /tshong bya na yang tshong rgyal / snyIng la bdag ’dzangs snyam masem par lha la phyag ’tshol [dang?] snyIng la bsam ba’bzhIn ‘ongste mo bzango /) (IOL Tib J 740, ll. 40- 43).
3 4 3: From the mouth of the god ’O-de Gung-rgyal: when the king acts as a god, he raises his visage; when a royal subject acts as the lord, he raises his face. When they make a fire in the land of gods, they sing in the land of men. Human—not finding wealth in your house, take to the road, and you will meet with wealth. This is a good prognosis. (3 4 3 / lha ’o degung rgyal gyI zhal nas rgyal po lhas mdzad na zhal mtho
25 The edited text can be viewed via the website of Old Tibetan Documents Online at http://www.aa.tufs.ac.jp and in the first volume of the OTDO monograph series, IMAEDA AND TAKEUCHI et al. 2007: 334-45. 26 For a typology of the prose and verse employed in Old Tibetan divination texts, along with a brief mention of the present text, see STEIN 1971-1972: 440-50. It is interesting to note the similarity between the verses of mo prognoses in Old Tibetan divination texts and those of the dice calls used in games of dice (cf. BDE- CHEN 2003: 2ff.). Both genres contain anecdotes relating to gods and famous events or people, and a mutual influence is not unlikely. 22 BRANDON DOTSON
/rgyal rgyal27 ’bangs rjes mjad na go mtho lha yul na mye ’bar myI yul na glu len myI khyim na nor myI rnyedelamdu zhugsne28 nor dang phrade mo bzango /) (IOL Tib J 740, ll. 69-72).
As in the case of each of these examples, every prognosis (mo) in the text ends with a short statement declaring the quality of the prognosis. This is usually either ‘good’ or ‘bad’, but sometimes ‘very good’, ‘very bad’ or ‘average’ (’bring). The balance is tipped well in favour of a good prognosis, however, with 36 ‘good’ prognoses against only thirteen ‘bad’ prognoses. This is evident from the following table, which presents the text in a simplified form. Though numerous entries name divine beings, the only such beings listed in the table below are those from whose mouths the prognoses come.
Table 3: The prognoses (mo) of IOL Tib J 740.
Source of Quality of Line Dice Rolls Prognosis Prognosis Numbers 1-4 4 4 4 Lhe’u rje Zin- Good tags 5-9 4 4 3 Lha Gangs-po Good Shon-gangs 10-12 4 4 1 Lha-myi La- Good rgyung 13-16 4 3 1 Good 17-20 4 4 2 Ltang Spu rje Good btsan-ba 21-25 4 3 4 Lha Thang-lha Good Ya-bzhur 26-29 4 2 4 Good 30-33 4 3 3 Rma-kho Rmo- Good snying 34-39 4 2 1 Lha-myi La- Good rgyung 40-43 4 1 4 Lam-lha Good 44-47 4 2 3 Lha Ma-bar Good and
27 This duplication is of the formal (i.e., non-grammatical) type, where words at the end of one line are repeated at the beginning of the next. 28 Read na. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 23
Excellent 48-51 4 1 3 Myi lha chen-po Very bad ’dra’ 52-54 4 2 2 Bad 55-58 4 1 1 Very bad 59-61 3 3 3 Mu-sman Good 62-65 3 3 4 Lha Btsan-po Good 66-68 3 1 4 Srog Stam-chen Good 69-72 3 4 3 Lha ’O-de gung- Good rgyal 73-79 3 4 4 Very good 80-84 3 2 4 Good 85-90 3 4 2 Lha Dbyar-mo- Good thang 91-93 3 1 2 Good 94-99 3 3 2 Good 99-102 3 3 1 Good 103-106 3 1 3 Lhe’u-rje Zin-tag Good 107-109 3 2 3 Good 110-113 3 4 1 Bad 114-117 3 2 1 Phyug-lha Snyer- Good ’bum 118-120 3 2 2 Lha Mu-tsa-med Good 121-124 3 1 1 Gar-the Chos-bu Good 125-128 2 2 2 Bad 129-132 2 4 4 Good 133-138 2 2 4 Lam-lha Bad 139-141 2 1 3 Yul-lha Pom-ting Good 142-146 2 3 3 Good 147-150 2 4 2 Bad 151-153 2 4 3 Lha Rgyung-tsa Good 154-157 2 4 1 Lhe’u-rje Zin- Good tags 158-162 2 1 4 Good 162-164 2 3 2 Yar-lha sham- Good pho 165-168 2 3 4 Rma Sha-bo Good 169-171 2 2 3 Bad 24 BRANDON DOTSON
172-174 2 1 2 Myi btsan Tsom- Bad po 175-176 2 1 1 Average (’bring) 177-180 2 3 1 Ltang-ring Basis (gzhi) 180-183 2 2 1 Srog-lha Stam- Bad chen 184-186 1 1 1 Srin-mtshan Bad Dgu-po 187-189 1 3 4 Average 190-193 1 1 4 Good 194-196 1 2 3 Average 197-200 1 4 3 Dpal-mo Good Mthong-chen 201-204 1 3 2 Yar-lha Sham- Good pho 205-207 1 1 2 Below average (’bring-smad) 208-211 1 4 4 Sha-med Gangs- Good dkar 212-215 1 4 2 Ngo-sa Khu-bar Average 216-218 1 3 1 Average 219-221 1 2 2 Bad 222-224 1 1 3 Lha Byi-rje Bad 225-227 1 3 3 Sla-bo Sla-sras Good 228-230 1 2 4 Lha Thun-’tsho Good 231-234 1 4 1 Bad 235-237 1 2 1 Bad
One of the most interesting features of this divination manual is that the prognosis often comes from the mouth of a divinity. The divinities mentioned are striking in that they tie together the gods of the centre with those of the periphery. The territorial divinity of the ’On region, ’O-lde Gung-rgyal (l. 70) is listed, as is that of Yar-lung, Yar-lha Sham-po (ll. 163, 202). So too is Thang-lha Ya-bzhur (l. 22), the mountain deity of ’Phan-yul and the areas surrounding the Gnyan-chen Thang-lha range. These are all well-known mountain gods in central Tibet, but some lesser known gods such as Sha-med Gangs-dkar (l. 209), Lhe’u-rje Zin-tags (ll. 2, 104, 155) and Sla-bo Sla-sras (l. 226) also deliver prognoses in the text. The first two of DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 25 these lesser deities are called upon as witnesses in the song of Emperor ’Dus-srong (reigned 685-704) in the Old Tibetan Chronicle (BACOT et al 1940-46: 119, 164), and these two mountain deities were later incorporated into the pantheons of the ‘twelve protectors of the doctrine/chthonic goddesses’ (brtan-ma bcu-gnyis) and the ‘thirteen mountain deities associated with the Btsan-po’ (mgur-lha bcu-gsum), respectively.29 The god Sla-bo Sla-sras is mentioned as ‘lord’ (rje) Bla-bo Bla-sras in the Dunhuang ritual text IOL Tib J 734 (ll. 88, 100, 165; THOMAS 1957: 64-67, 80-85). He is also known from later sources: in KhG, Lha-bo Lha-sras was among the twelve ‘intelligent ones’ (shes-pa can) who saw the first Tibetan Emperor, Gnya’-khri Btsan-po, des-cend from the peak of Lha-ri Gyang-tho and arrive at Lha-ri Rol-po Btsan-thang Sgo-bzhi (KhG: 159). In a parallel narrative in Lde’u, the god Sgam Lha-bo Lha-sras welcomes the new Tibetan sovereign on one of the stages of his journey from heaven to earth (Lde’u: 236; KARMAY 1998 [1994]: 302. The other deities mentioned in the divination manual are lesser known or unattested, but special mention must be made of the god Dbyar-mo- thang (l. 86), no doubt connected with the site of the same name in eastern Tibet.30 As detailed by MACDONALD (1971: 271-87), Old Tibetan divination texts vary greatly: while some show a marked Buddhist influence, with prognoses coming from the mouths of bodhisattvas, other texts seem to reflect an ancient Tibetan tradition with little or no discernible Buddhist influence. The current text seems to fall into the latter category. The text explicitly mentions bon-po four times (ll. 14, 54, 111, 206). In one example, the prognosis states ‘it is inappropriate for one skilled in bon not to perform bon; this is a bad prognosis’ (phon mkhas pas bon ma byas na myi rung te mo nganto/, l. 54). This does not necessarily identify the author(s) of this divination text as bon-po, but at least suggests that it came from a
29 For the brtan-ma bcu-gnyis, see NEBESKY-WOJKOWITZ 1998 [1956]: 181-98. According to Nebesky-Wojkowitz’s lists, Sha-med Gangs-dkar is located either at Lha-phu gangs, Rdo-rje Brag-dkar, or Rdo-rje Brag-dmar. According to GNYA’- GONG (1993: 390, n. 15), Lhe’u-rje Zin-brang is one of the thirteen mountain deities associated with the Btsan-po (mgur-lha bcu-gsum). On this class of deities, see NEBESKY-WOJKOWITZ 1998 [1956]: 223-24. 30 On the possible locations of this site, which is connected with the treaty of 821-823 between Tibet, China, the Uighurs and Nanzhao, see UEBACH 1991: 516-22, and KAPSTEIN 2004: 106-8. 26 BRANDON DOTSON
‘bon-po milieu’, or at least was authored by someone well disposed to this class of Tibetan ritual specialists.31
A Problem of Interpretation: Dice or Tax?
Aside from Thomas, la Vallée Poussin also noted the existence of IOL Tib J 740. In his Catalogue of Tibetan texts in the Stein collection of the then India Office Library, LA VALLÉE POUSSIN (1962: 234) characterizes the first part of the document as mo divination, and the second part as a ‘document about taxes’. IOL Tib J 740 then seems to have gone all but unnoticed until Richardson remarked on the second part of the document in his 1989 article, ‘Early Tibetan Law Concerning Dog-Bite’. There he rightly states that the document ‘gives details of the proper decision, according to a new set of regulations, in cases concerning such matters as loans, taxation, marital disputes and so on’ (RICHARDSON 1998 [1989]: 135). Richardson studied the document in further detail, but only a partial translation is found in his papers.32 The second part of the document is entitled StagI lo’i bka’I sho byung be’i sho tshIgs gyI zhus lan, or ‘Replies concerning sho-tshigs from the tiger year sho edict’. The text contains replies given to questions that concern property, loans, interest, marriage, monasteries and the conscription of troops. These issues are spread out over eleven ‘clauses’, or sets of questions and answers, and 122 lines. In each clause, the structure is the same: a question is submitted from the minister of the exterior (phyi-blon) to the judges of the court retinue (pho-brang ’khor gyi zhal-ce-pa), who report back with their decisions. In each case, it is always a question of whether a matter can be decided ‘by means of sho’. The final words of the petition thus typically end, ‘Do we decide by means of sho or not—how do you command?’ (shos gcad dam myI gcad ji ltar ’tshal) (IOL Tib J 740, ll. 7, 69-70). This underlines the pivotal issue concerning the interpretation and translation of this text: the definition of the term sho. While the most common meaning of the word is ‘dice’, Richardson, perhaps due to the repeated mention in the text of loans (bu-lon, skyin), interest
31 On my use of the terms Bon and bon-po, refer to n. 4 of the Preface. 32 Drafts of a partial transliteration and partial translation are kept in the Richardson papers at the Bodleian Library under the catalogue number MS. Or. Richardson 44. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 27
(gyur, skyed), fines (chad), judicial punishment (khrin) 33 and repayment (sbyang), read sho as ‘tax’. In doing so, he may have had in mind compound terms such as sho-gam (JÄSCHKE 1998 [1881]: 563) and sho-khral (ZHANG et al 1998 [1984]: 2866), both meaning ‘customs’, ‘duty’, or, in a looser sense, ‘tax’. While I initially applied this reading in my own attempts to translate the text, it became apparent that this reading of sho was untenable. The language of the document is quite obscure due not only to its antiquity, but also to its legal milieu. It employs a specialized legal vocabulary, and includes phrases in a legal jargon that is very difficult to translate. Nonetheless, the grammar is generally consist- ent. In the phrase shos gcad, sho is in the instrumentive case, so the petitioners are asking whether or not they should gcad (cut, decide) by means of sho. To read sho as tax would render the phrase ‘to cut/ decide by means of tax’. For this to make sense in context, it would have to mean ‘to apply tax’. This would be a rather unusual turn of phrase, and such a translation stretches the bounds of Tibetan grammar far more than the obvious reading, ‘decide by means of dice’. The veracity of this reading can be further demonstrated in the context of some examples from the text. Clause IV (ll. 251-58) concerns the legislation of loans and interest. The passage is first given in transliteration, with only minor editing, and then translated in two separate ways. The first translation reads sho as ‘dice’, and the second translates sho as ‘tax’.
bla ’ogI bu londu gyur pe’i rnams shos myî gcado zhes byung na / bu lon gyi / gyur ded pe’i mchid nas nI gyur yang bu lon shos myI gcad pe’i nang ’du ’du /khrin ma lags / pas bka’ shos myI gcad par gsol ces mchI / chags pe’i khungs po’i mchId nas ni bla ’ogI bu lon shos myI gcad par ’pyung gis / gyur shos myi gcad par yang myi ’pyung la / gyur ces bgyI pa’ bu lon dngos sho ma lagste / sngar bu lon dusu ma phul pe’i nongs pe’i chad par gyur pas / ’dI yang nyes che phra [pa] ’dra pas / chad pa ’gum spyug man cad la thug pa / thugs dpag mdzad pe’i bka’ shos bcad par gsol ces ’byung ’ba’di rnams gang ltar ’tshal / kha mar las byung ba’ shos gcad par ’tshol cIg // (IOL Tib J 740, ll. 251- 58).
Translation one: sho as dice.
[Question:] Where it is said that interest on those loans that come under the authority (bla ’og) is not decided by means of dice, and the one
33 On the meaning of this term, see COBLIN 1991: 73 and DOTSON forthcoming b. 28 BRANDON DOTSON
pursuing the interest on the loan (gyur ded-pa) [the lender],34 requests that the interest should be included within those [cases] of loans that are not decided by means of dice, and that [the interest] should not be a legal punishment (khrin), and therefore should not be decided by means of the dice edict, and the source of the loan [the borrower] requests that since it is the case that a loan under the authority is not decided by means of dice, but it is not the case that interest cannot be decided by means of dice, that there be no dice for the loan itself, but that they do it for what is regarded as interest, and that we kindly decide by means of the dice edict the punishment, from death and banishment on down, according to the severity of the crime, for outstanding previously unpaid loans that have since become punishable offences, how do you command [we resolve] these [matters]?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions], decide by means of dice!
Translation two: sho as tax.
[Question:] Where it is said that interest on those loans that come under the authority (bla ’og) is not taxed, and the one pursuing the interest on the loan (gyur ded-pa) [the lender], states that both the interest and the loan are included within those [cases] that are not taxed, and requests that the tax edict not be applied on account of it not being a legal punishment (khrin), and the source of the loan [the borrower] requests that since it is the case that a loan under the authority is not taxable, but it is not the case that the interest is not taxable, that there be no tax for the loan itself, but that they do it for what is regarded as interest, and that we kindly decide by means of the tax edict the punishment, from death and banishment on down, according to the severity of the crime, for outstanding previously unpaid loans that have since become harmful offences, how do you command [we resolve] these [matters]?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions]: apply the tax!
The reading of sho in this passage determines the manner of loan repayment. Reading sho as dice, the lender (gyur ded-pa, lit. ‘the one pursuing the interest’) wants to be repaid without recourse to dice, while the borrower (chags-pa’i khungs-po, lit. ‘the source of the loan’), wants the interest to be decided by means of dice. This is obviously to the advantage of the borrower, as interest, which is generally applied to late payment, is usually decided according to a
34 The use of the verb ’ded in this construction seems to be parallel to its use in the modern nominalized compound bun ’ded, short for lo-bun ’ded-pa, meaning ‘loan collector’ (GOLDSTEIN 2001: 723). DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 29 contract (TAKEUCHI 1995: 46-91), and a good roll of the dice could conceivably free the borrower from having to pay any interest at all.35 Further, the debtor requests that his punishment for criminally overdue loans be decided in the same manner, perhaps also in hopes of the dice setting him free. On the other hand, if one reads sho in this passage as ‘tax’, and shos gcad as ‘to tax’, then the debtor’s request is exceedingly odd, since he is asking to be taxed for the interest he owes. It further beggars belief that he should request to be punished for his outstanding debts according to a tax code that may have him banished or executed. This being the case, if we assume that the borrower is not voicing self-destructive impulses, but is acting in his own self-interest, then the context stands together with the grammar to support the translation of sho as ‘dice’, and shos-gcad as ‘to decide by means of dice’. The veracity of this reading is further underlined by a passage in clause VII (ll. 269-86), where disputes concerning an unmarried woman’s chastity are decided by means of dice (infra, 42-46). Read- ing such a passage in terms of tax would render it nonsensical. We can therefore return to the title of the text, which is ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes (sho-tshigs) from the tiger year dice edict (bka’-sho)’. It is evident from the text itself that the dice statutes indicate when it is appropriate to use dice to resolve a legal matter. The questions and answers that comprise the second part of IOL Tib J 740 concern those matters that were left sufficiently unclear in these statutes so as to warrant a formal petition. This could be confirmed, of course, were the text of the tiger year dice edict ever to come to light. It should be noted here that the clauses of ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’ do not imply that dice were employed only in instances where the facts of the case were disputed or unclear. The clauses plainly include instances where dice decided disputed facts, the final
35 Takeuchi noted the formula according to which failure to pay on time doubled the amount to be paid: ‘in case [the borrower] should fail to repay by that time or if he tries to conspire [not to pay, the amount of payment] shall be doubled’ (dus der ma phul lam gya gyu zhig ’tshal na / gcig la gnyis su [-] bsgyur te) (IOL Tib J 1141, ll. 5-6; TAKEUCHI 1995: 199, 200). This formula is often followed by a statement to the effect that the lender can then foreclose on the borrower’s possessions. The statement usually begins, dngos bsgyur dang bcas-pa or dngos gyur dang bcas-pa. Takeuchi went some way towards defining this phrase (TAKEUCHI 1995: 52), and it is evident that it means ‘[the loan] itself, with that which it has become (bsgyur)’. In other words, ‘the loan, with interest (gyur)’. 30 BRANDON DOTSON outcome of the case, and the punishment of a guilty party. In every clause of the text, the local magistrates ask how to decide a case or a point in a case according to the dice statutes of a dice edict. Therefore they had access to legal norms that prescribed dice as a legal means, but the norms were insufficient in these particular cases due either to their complexity or to the inadequacy of the dice statutes in the tiger year dice edict. That the magistrates had access to such norms is evident in their references to previous dice edicts, so the confusion seems simply to have been with the new edict. Having demonstrated that this legal text does indeed concern whether or not to decide cases, and aspects of cases, according to the roll of the dice, its connection with the mo divination text is now evident: when a case was decided by means of dice, it was done with recourse to the mo divination text in the first part of the scroll. It is unclear, however, whether or not the mo divination text, like the replies to questions concerning the dice edict, was issued from the court (pho-brang). Though they appear to be written in the same hand, the document bears no seal, and is most likely the copy of an official document. Therefore, the possibility remains that the divination manual was not a standardized set of prognoses (mo) issued from the centre by imperial officials. This conclusion seems all the more likely considering the fact that the manual’s prognoses are supremely generic, and that they refer also to pebbles, which, like dice, were used for divination. It seems, then, that in deciding cases, the local magistrates pragmatically employed a generic divination manual, and not an official manual issued from the court. In either scenario, however, the Tibetan Empire did create a standardized method of deciding the guidelines for punishment. Furthermore, whether the gods in this divination manual who give voice to the various prognoses were assembled on an ad-hoc basis as a sort of organic, informal pantheon, or represented a standard set issued from the centre, this divination manual unifies many of the telluric deities of Tibet for the purpose of governance and the rule of law, and stands as a witness to a process of ritual centralization whereby Tibet created a ‘national’ pantheon.
On Dice and Divinity
The use of dice and other games of chance in deciding legal matters is well-known in the more recent history of Tibet. In his study of homicide disputes in Sakya, for example, HENDERSON (1964: 1103) mentions a case where the accused was forced to roll dice on the skin DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 31 of a freshly killed yak, and, winning the roll, was allowed to go free. CASSINELLI AND EKVALL (1969: 176-77) apparently describe this same trial, but in their analysis it appears that the case was only decided in this manner because the facts of the case could not be established with certainty. FRENCH (1995: 134-35) also mentions two cases, one in Lhasa in the 1930s concerning inheritance, the other in southwest Tibet concerning a loan, where the disputed facts of the case were decided by rolling dice. In the modern legal cases mentioned by Henderson and French, both state that recourse to dice was not considered to be a matter of mere chance, but was believed to reveal the will of the gods. There are numerous other instances where chance is employed in order to resolve what might be viewed as official matters. One well- known procedure for choosing between candidates for a given office is to write the candidates’ names on pieces of paper, sometimes within a ball of dough, put them into a bowl or urn and pick one at random to reveal the successful candidate.36 In some instances, as in the selection of the caretaker of Khra-’brug Monastery, the name was chosen in front of the image of a divinity (SØRENSEN et al 2005: 109-10, n. 282), and in other cases various gods were called upon as witnesses. Ramble analyzed a similar process in the Tibetan-ethnic village of Te in Nepal’s Mustang district, whereby the village headman is elected by means of an elaborate ritual game that effectively randomizes the outcome (RAMBLE 1993: 292-95). In a brilliant analysis of this ‘game’ of chance, Ramble reveals that the role of divine intervention in the selection, according to the participants themselves, was secondary at best. RAMBLE (1993: 297) concludes that the ‘evidence leaves us with no option but to conclude that it is the game itself which decides. People nominate certain candidates, and the gods are called as witnesses to the decision, but the selection is made by nothing other than the game.’ A similar process may be at work in the legal procedures revealed in the present document: although the general prognosis and legal decision (but not the specific sentence or terms) often comes from the mouth of a divinity, the prognosis, whether it comes from a divinity or not, is always the result of the roll of the dice. Approaching this from a functionalist perspective, there is little difference whether one attributes the agency in such a procedure to the gods or to random
36 See RAMBLE 1993: 295-96 for two relevant examples relating to the selection of the abbot of Sman-ri Monastery and the junior tutor of the Dalai Lama, respectively. 32 BRANDON DOTSON chance. In either case, it is a mechanism through which figures of authority legitimate their decisions by means of placing agency outside of themselves. The role of the local magistrate who presides over the decision is therefore that of a caretaker or assistant who mediates the decision handed down by the dice.
THE CONTENTS OF THE LEGAL TEXT
Having discussed the nature of the two documents comprising IOL Tib J 740, demonstrated their relationship, and located them in relation to Tibetan legal practice, we can now examine in some detail the contents of the second text, ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’. As mentioned above, the legal document contains eleven sets of answered questions and 122 lines. The contents are important not only for what they tell us about Tibetan imperial legal procedure and the law itself, but for the assumptions they reveal about the nature of Tibetan society at the time. Some of the clauses, in particular the clause treating the legal status of monastic estates and monastic property and the clause dealing with the provisioning of soldiers, clarify important issues relating to the day to day functioning of the empire, and will therefore be analyzed in some detail. The text’s eleven sets of questions and answers may be sum- marized as follows:
‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’.
I. (ll. 239-42) Relates to the precedence of the statutes of the tiger year dice edict over earlier dice edicts. II. (ll. 242-46) Relates to the applicability of the dice edict to land, persons and households that were previously not subject to [decisions through] dice edicts. III. (ll. 246-51) Relates to the correct procedure for compensating a husband when a woman breaks off a marriage and returns to her natal home. IV. (ll. 251-58) Relates to a dispute between lender and borrower. V. (ll. 258-63) Relates to loans that have been secretly re-lent or resold by the borrower. VI. (ll. 263-67) Relates to deposited securities (bzhag-btam). VII. (ll. 268-86) Relates to the proper legal procedure when a married woman is stolen from her husband or when an unmarried woman is kidnapped. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 33
VIII. (ll. 286-303) Treats the proper procedure for punishing a messen- ger who loses horses, wages, etc., entrusted to him. IX. (ll. 303-20) Relates to loans made by a monastic estate and the legal status of the property of a temple or monastery. X. (ll. 320-31) Concerns proper legal procedure when an estate loses its harvest to hail and cannot fill its quotas to the army or to a garrison. XI. (ll. 331-59) Concerns the proper provisioning of soldiers by the estates, and punishment for their failing to send the required prov- isions.
The structure of each clause is the same: in the first part the problem is summarized and a question submitted, and in the second part an answer is given. The text is composite in nature, since it consists of answers given by judges of the court retinue (pho-brang khor gyi zhal-ces-pa) to numerous questions submitted by petition through the minister of the exterior (phyi-blon). The only continuity in these questions and answers is that they all relate to the correct implementation of the statutes of a new edict issued in a tiger year. As a result, the topics addressed are far ranging, and move from matters of debt, loans and interest to wife capture, monastic estates and troop conscription. Far from being a set of ‘frequently asked questions’, these clauses appear to have arisen organically from numerous disputes. The manner in which these decisions are taken is instructive, as it demonstrates a high degree of legal and administrative centralization. Two ‘addenda’ (yan-lag/yal-ga) in the text clarify the process by which these sets of questions and answers were created. In both cases, they precede the text of the decision dispatched from the court.
From a supplement (yan-lag) to the dice statutes: decision in response to a petition dispatched (dgyigs) from the place [seat] of the exterior minister to the place of the judge[s] (zhal-ces-pa) of the court retinue: (sho tshigs gyI yan lag las / pho brang khor gyi zhal ces pe sar [nas] zhus pa / phyI lon sa nas dgyIgste zhus pa / mchId gyis bcade zhus pe’i zhus lan /) (ll. 268-69).
From a supplement (yal-ga) to the dice statutes of the tiger37 year: decision dispatched from the place of the judge(s) of the court retinue to the place of the minister of the exterior: ([rta’I] sta lo’I sho tshigs gyI yal ga’ las pho brang khor gyI zhal ces pas / [phyi blon sar] zhal
37 ‘Horse’ (rta) was crossed out and replaced, below the line by sta, presumably for tiger (stag). 34 BRANDON DOTSON
ce’i pe’I sa nas zhus las / phyI blon sar dgyigste mchId gyis bcad pa / /) (ll. 273-75).
These clauses locate the decisions contained in the text at the Tibetan court (pho-brang), the (mobile) centre of the Tibetan Empire. Therefore the clauses can be taken to represent the legal positions of judges of the central Tibetan imperial government, and cannot be dismissed as representative only of the local area from which each legal query arose. Presumably these cases were brought first to local magistrates, who had trouble with the cases and submitted them to the minister of the exterior, who in turn submitted the case to the judges of the court retinue for a final decision. The clauses in the text are composed of these decisions, which, as is often the case in such official correspondence, open with the original question before moving on to the decision.38 The document is therefore a testament to the legal and bureaucratic centralization of the Tibetan Empire: matters arising on the periphery are decided at the centre. The nature of the decisions is important as well. In most cases, the correspondence has to do with the applicability of the dice edict to specific legal cases. Here, as mentioned above, the local magistrate probably had some room to negotiate the terms of a given legal sentence, as the dice presumably decide only who wins a case, or determine a certain point in the case, and not the terms of the settlement. One is tempted to see here the sort of dynamic between centralization and decentralization that held sway in early twentieth century Tibet, where the central administration was content to devolve nearly all legal authority to local administrators, provided that taxes arrived on time (GOLDSTEIN 1971b: 180). In other clauses among the ‘Replies’, however, the judges of the court retinue hand down full legal decisions. Further, these decisions do not concern only murder or treason, but include more mundane affairs such as marriage and separation (ll. 246-51). This demonstrates a very high degree of legal centralization that was never again matched by any subsequent Tibetan administration. Further, it demands that we rethink to some extent the theory that the exercise of ‘soft power’ and devolution of authority to the periphery by subsequent Tibetan governments was due to long-standing Tibetan ideology, rather than to straightforward impotence. This discussion brings up another important question: who were the local magistrates who made these decisions according to the
38 See, for example, PT 1089, an answer to a petition concerning the order of rank in Sha-cu, i.e., Dunhuang (LALOU 1955). DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 35 guidelines relayed by the minister of the exterior from the judges of the Tibetan court? Their identity or rank is never mentioned explicitly. It is worth noting, however, that in their recourse to mo divination they employ technologies taken directly from a ritualist milieu: the methodology of the diviner in making a prognosis, medical or otherwise, and that of the local magistrate in deciding a legal case were virtually identical in form and content. Considering mo divination, in which the prognoses often issue ‘from the mouth of a god’ (lha’i zhal nas), Macdonald contends that the prognoses came from mediums in whom the gods and spirits incarnated, and through whom they spoke (MACDONALD 1971: 275, 285). Whether these divinations truly involved possession or not, the question remains: was the use of mo divination in a legal context an administrative appropriation of ritual technology, or evidence that ritualists occupied administrative positions as local leaders? Whether the overlap in ritual technologies between the bon or gshen diagnosing an illness and the local magistrate deciding a legal case indicates that these roles were united in one person is far from clear. That the roles of ritualist, healer and administrator should overlap in a Tibetan context, however, is by no means a radical proposition, and warrants consideration. The questions and answers in some clauses can be very straightforward, but problematic in those clauses where multiple issues are addressed by more than one authority. The decisions issued from the judges of the court retinue most often open with the phrase kha-mar las or myig-mar las, and this reveals that the medium through which these decisions were issued was a wooden slip. The kha-dmar/kha-mar or ‘red notch’ refers to the type of notched wooden slip in which instructions concerning judicial decisions were sent. This is made clear in a passage of the ‘Section on Law and State’ in Lde’u that concerns the types of wooden slips appropriate to various legal judgments:
As for the three legal slips (zhal-lce’i byang-bu), 39 the ‘good undefiled’ (zang-yag) adheres to the testimony of the complainant (blo- yus), and states that he is honest. The striped middle (sked-khra) [slip] judges the lawsuit as false, and states that the complainants’ wealth is to be confiscated. The red-notched (kha-dmar) slip states that instructions are attached (kha-dmar ’dogs). Those are the three slips.
39 The corresponding Classical Tibetan term, zhal-lce, may be a folk etymology of the Old Tibetan term zhal-ce/ zhal-ces. Here the zhal in the term zhal-ce/-ces may well be related to ’jal/bcal/gzhal/’jol, ‘weigh, assess, ponder, judge’. 36 BRANDON DOTSON
(zhal lce’i byang bu gsum ni/ zang yag bya ba blo yus kyi shags dang sbyar nas drang por gcod pa la zer ro/ sked khra ni zhal lce yon por gcod gcod pa la zer te/ blo yus kyi nor za ba la zer ro/ byang bu kha dmar ni kha dmar ’dogs pa la zer te/ byang bu gsum mo. Lde’u: 262).40
It is evident that the red notched slip and the attendant instructions are used only in cases where there is no clear verdict for or against a complainant, but a more nuanced decision. The same passage from Lde’u also mentions a black dot (mig-nag) wooden slip, but unfortunately has nothing to say on the topic of the ‘red dot’ (mig- mar) slip. The ‘red dot’ that is also mentioned in some clauses of ‘Replies’ is most likely also a type of slip used to relay instructions regarding a legal decision, but I can observe no qualitative difference between the type of content in the red dot instructions versus the content of the red notch instructions. In any case, both ‘red notch’ and ‘red dot’, though ostensibly names of the types of wooden slips themselves, appear to be used metonymically to refer to the information the slips contain and perhaps even to the offices that issue them. Turning to an analysis of the clauses themselves, since the document is rather long and unwieldy, it will be preferable to sum- marize the document’s more interesting aspects by theme rather than offering here a full translation.
Loans, Interest, Debt and Corvée Labour
Many of the clauses in the document deal with loans and interest and whether or not they are subject to a decision by dice. The above translation of clause IV (ll. 251-58) already demonstrated a case in which the borrower wishes the interest on a loan to be decided by means of dice, while the lender, presumably favouring the terms of
40 Despite the fact that KhG relied heavily on Lde’u as a source for its ‘Section on Law and State’, the passage on legal slips quoted above is left out of the ‘Section on Law and State’ in KhG, and placed further on in KhG’s narrative in a chapter devoted to the reign of Khri Srong-lde-brtsan (reigned 756-c.800). There it makes up one of the reforms created by minister Mgos Khri-bzang Yab-lhag. The passage is evidently lifted from Lde’u, but contains an explanatory gloss on the meaning of kha-dmar. ‘The [slip] that adheres to the complainants’ testimony, and finds it to be honest is called the ‘good undefiled’ (zang-yag). The one that finds it false is called the ‘striped middle’ (sked-khra). The slip that has attached instructions (kha- dmar ’dogs-pa) concerning [who is] right and wrong is called the ‘red notch’ (kha- dmar). Those are the three legal slips.’ (blo yus kyi shags dang sbyar nas drang por gcod pa la zang yag zer/ yon por gcod pa la rked khre zer/ bden rdzun gyi kha dmar ’dogs pa la byang bu kha dmar zer te zhal ce’i byang bu gsum mo. KhG: 378). DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 37 the contract, does not want the case to be so resolved. As remarked already, adjudicating such a case with dice is obviously to the advantage of the borrower, as interest is usually decided according to a contract, and a good dice roll could conceivably free the borrower from having to pay any interest at all. While in clause IV the judges’ decision went in favour of the borrower, and allowed the case to be decided by dice, in clause V (ll. 258-63) the judges side with the lender by honouring the terms of the original contract.
[Question:] [Where] there are crimes and violations, or one subsequently parcels [a loan] (‘og-dum bgyis-pa) and so forth, and the lender (bu-lon chags-pa)41 makes an accusation, based on [the contract with] a swearer’s seal (dam-rgya), [that the borrower] made a subsequent sale [of the loan], but the borrower (chags-pa’i khungs-po) requests that it be decided by means of dice because he has sold [the loan] or loaned the item itself, and the lender (ded-pa) requests that, as the [contract with a] swearer’s seal is confirmed, it not be decided by means of dice, what is to be done with these two positions?
[Answer:]—Addendum (bu)—according to the red notch [instructions], do not decide by means of dice the interest on the loan.
nongs skyon mchIs pa dang / ’og tum bgyis pa lastsogs pa / ’og tu tshongsu bgyis pa bu lon chagspa snyadu dam rgya las khungs po’i mchId nas nI / tshongsu bgyis pa[s] ma [lagste] ’am bu lon dngos chags pa chags pa ma lagste42 pas shos gcad par gsol / [line break] ded pe’i mchid nas nI / dam rgya brtsan shos myi gcad par gsol ces 43 mchi ’dI nyis gang ltar ’tshal / bu/ kha mar las dpyong bu londu byur na shos ma gcad cIg /
Here the judges of the court retinue reject the defendant’s plea for recourse to dice. This is perhaps due to his blatant violation of the loan contract. Similarly, in clause VI (ll. 263-67), which deals with deposited securities (bzhag btam), the judges do not allow the dice edict to interfere with a contract drawn up between two parties.
[Question:] In regard to deposited securities (bzhag btam), [if] it is said that they are not decided by means of dice, and men, animals (rkang- ’gros), wealth, cattle, horses and so forth were accounted for and put in
41 This nominalized form appears to conflict with Takeuchi’s ‘type 1’ formula for the opening of a loan contract, where a nominalized form would presumably indicate the borrower (TAKEUCHI 1995: 48) 42 Some apparent (aborted?) efforts to delete lagste. 43 Read gyur. 38 BRANDON DOTSON
an official document, and the depositor (bzhag-pa) asks, if one does not apply the dice edict to this, and [the deposit] itself (dngos) is not there [i.e., has vanished], concerning punishment of debt (skyin khrin), is it carried out (dgum) by means of dice or not? How do you command?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions], as it is the case that the loan is not decided by means of dice, do not decide by means of dice!
bzhag btam [s] lta po shos myI gcad ces ’byung ba’ / myi dang rkang ’gros dang nor rdzas gnag rta lastsogs pa / btams pa las/ bka’ shogdu blangs nas / bzhag pe’i mchId nas ’dI / bka’ shos nI myI khums na / dngos ma mchIs na skyin khrin lta po shos dgum gam myi dgum// jI ltar ’tshal / kha mar las bu lon shos myi gcad par ’byung bas shos myI gcad par ’tshol cig /
This decision probably came as a great relief to the depositor, who otherwise might have lost his entire deposit to a roll of the dice despite having recorded it in a contract. One difficulty regarding loans in the text is the phrase bla-’og gi bu-lon, provisionally translated ‘loan under the authority’. Alternatively, bla-’og gi bu-lon could indicate ‘a loan, [whether between those of] high or low [rank]’, and indeed TAKEUCHI (1995: 148-49, 264-65) interprets bla-’og in this way in two of the contracts he translates. Another possibility is that the phrase means ‘a loan [from] a superior [to] an inferior’. Due to the fact that bla-’og gi bu- lon is used not only in general descriptions, but apparently to describe the quality of a particular loan, only the first or last of these three interpretations can be correct. And if it is indeed the first inter- pretation that proves correct, this ‘loan under the authority’ is not a direct loan from the Tibetan administration, but a loan between two parties where the administration has jurisdiction. This jurisdiction is exercised in the present document by deciding whether or not the interest on a loan can be decided by means of dice, and not according to the terms of the original loan contract. This is also apparent in the case of a debt incurred by a man when he loses horses and goods entrusted to him, apparently for corvée labour, as in clause VIII (ll. 286-303). The first part of the clause describes a situation in which a man has lost goods entrusted to him, and asks how he is to be punished. The first part of a long reply is as follows:
[Answer:] According to the red dot (myIg-mar) [instructions], [the debt] is incurred by the messenger, and although according to the replies of the horse year the legal punishment for the debt from his loan DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 39
is decided by means of dice, according to the official law (bka’-khrIms) debts up until the present having been repaid (sbyang), if there is interest on something lost or destroyed, as it is interest on a loan under the authority (bla ’og), it is proper that it not be decided by means of dice.
According to the reply made by the judge, concerning the so-called ‘there being nothing but that in the summary’ [statute], even if what is lost reappears (yong), it is not there [i.e., ‘it does not matter’] (ma mchis). Concerning the dead, even if it is given up by the waters (chab gyis ’tshal), or by the jackals (khyI lcang gIs ’tshal), and even if what is lost is there [present], whether there is interest or not on what is dead or lost, summarize it in what is to be repaid (sbyang-ba), but it is not necessary to investigate whether or not it is in the summary (mdo-ris).
myIg mar las phor phog pa dang g.yar pe’i skyIn khrIn / rta’i lo’i zhu lan las shos gcad par ’byung / gIs gyang/ bka’ khrIms gyis skyin ba’i ’da’ bar ’byung pas sbyangste gum stordu gyur na / bla ’ogI bu londu ’gyur pas / shos myi gcad pe’i rIgs / zhal ce pas zhus pa las mdo rIs mchis mchIs pa ma mchIs zhes bya ba’ nI stor pa la nI yong yang ma mchIs / gum ba’ la yang chab gyIs ’tshal pa dang / khyI spyang gIs ’tshal pa dang / stor pa yang mchIs pa zhîg mchIs na / gum stordu gyur tam ma gyur pa’ nI spyang be’i nang du ’du bas mdo rIs mchIs ma mchis pa myI rma be’i rIgs / / (IOL Tib J 740, ll. 295-302).
This is an interesting passage, as it demonstrates that the ‘official law’ (bka’-khrims) held precedence over the statutes of the dice edict. Here it is a matter of compensating someone whose goods and horses were lost after he entrusted them to a messenger. The application of the dice edict would allow the messenger the possibility of not having to repay his debt, but the ‘official law’ effectively prevents that, and therefore sides firmly with the complainant. Here the refusal to use dice may be due to it being a ‘loan/ debt under the authority’, namely, as administration-sponsored corvée labour over which the authorities wished to exert full legal control. This meaning is also supported by the opening to clause IV: ‘Where it is said that interest on those loans that come under the authority (bla ’og) is not decided by means of dice.’ (supra, 28). Of course that decision goes on to prescribe dice to settle the matter, but, as detailed already, the cases that make up this document are all by nature less than routine. In dealing with the man’s punishment for losing goods and horses, clause VIII specifically states that punishment applies even to cases where the loss is accidental: ‘concerning the loss, even if it was not 40 BRANDON DOTSON the fault of men.’ (stor lta bo myIs nongs pa yang ma lags. l. 291). This clause therefore serves as an example of how those providing corvée labour were held responsible for any losses of transport animals or merchandise, a practice echoed in early twentieth-century Tibet, where villagers carrying out corvée labour had to pay for any breakage or loss to the goods they carried (GOLDSTEIN 1971a: 17). The second paragraph of the reply, which applies a very literal and legalistic approach to the summary (mdo-ris) of the lost goods, seems to serve as a protection against messengers who steal the goods entrusted to them. Though this is a very difficult passage containing a few obscure metaphors, the meaning seems to be essentially this: once the legal proceedings concerning lost property have begun, no further evidence may be admitted, and the court will only consider the original claims. This appears to serve two purposes: it prevents the complainant from continuously adding to the list of lost goods, and, perhaps more importantly, it establishes that the case will proceed as before even if the man who initially lost the goods somehow finds them. The latter presumably occurred in a number of cases where men stole goods entrusted to them, and later, facing legal proceedings, succumbed to fear and handed them over. A passage in another Dunhuang document, PT 1290, also concerns the proper conduct of messengers and the types of seals that they employ. Both MACDONALD (1971: 325) and STEIN (1984: 263- 64) analyzed this difficult passage and noted its relevance to the Tibetan Empire’s system for relaying information. Of particular interest to the above clause, the passage in PT 1290 states that messengers can be put to death (sod du rchugste) for misconduct (STEIN 1984: 263). The above clause and the passage in PT 1290 indicate that the Tibetan Empire operated a sophisticated system for relaying both information and goods. In summary, it appears from the clauses reviewed above that the Tibetan administration generally did not apply the dice edict to those cases where there was already a firm contract between two parties detailing the terms of the loan. In matters ‘under the authority’ (bla-’og) of the Tibetan administration, such as corvée labour, the judges, as one might expect, acted in the interest of the administration and the transportation network.
Women and Marriage
‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’ contains two clauses that deal with women and marriage. The first, DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 41 clause III (ll. 246-51), is short and particularly illuminating on the legislation of marriage.
[Question:] According to previous dice edicts, when a girl breaks off a marriage (bag-rgod)44 and until now resides in her paternal home and stays there, and the husband (khyim-thab) asks that she not be sent [back], and the parents and [the girl] herself at first agree but it now comes about, however, that they do not agree and he requests that a substitute (glud) be given, how is it to be given?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions], no fine should be paid for the desertion up to the present, and [the girl] herself shall be given to her husband.
bka’ sho’i sngun / rol du pud med pag rgod bgyIste/ da’ ltar pha myIng la gnas [pa] zhIng mchIs pa/ khyIm thab gyis nI [drung] myi btang par gsol/ pha ma dang dngos gyIs nI thog ma yang mchId mjal45 pas da’ / rung yang mchI mjal par myI ’byung gis / glud ’tshal par yang gsol ba’ mchIs na ji ltar ’tshal // kha mar las / pardu rang reng ’tshal pe’i chad pa ni ma mchIs / dngos ni khyIm thab / stsol cig/ /
In this passage, the law falls heavily on the side of the husband. His request for a substitute wife is analogous to an investor’s demand to be ‘made whole’ following an unexpected loss. The legal resol- ution—that his in-laws need not supply a substitute, but must return him his wife—suggests a ‘for better or for worse’ approach to marriage. This approach to a man’s wife as inalienable property is not so surprising, given that we have records from Dunhuang of marriage by sale (gnyen-tshongs) (TAKEUCHI 1995: 162-63). Among Tibetan nomads there are also legal customs that govern such situations. Describing legal customs among Tibetan nomads in Rdza-chu-kha, Mgo-log, Gser-thang and elsewhere, Nam-mkha’i Nor-bu notes the custom of ‘restitution for mo-sha’. This term, mo- sha, is used to refer to a situation where a girl breaks off a marriage and returns to her parents, generally after three days. Nor-bu attributes this mainly to the nomadic custom of arranged marriage, which leads to situations where the bride and groom have never met before their marriage. As recompense for mo-sha, the bride’s family
44 This meaning is not entirely certain, but is suggested by the context. One reading would be bag bgod, ‘to separate the marriage’. 45 There is a small circle over the ma prefix. 42 BRANDON DOTSON is required to give the groom a good young horse and to pay back nine-fold any bride price given them.46 Another section of ‘Replies’, clause VII (ll. 268-86), deals with the proper legal procedure when a married woman is stolen from her husband or when an unmarried woman is kidnapped. This is one of the most difficult clauses in the text, and it should be stressed that the translation is provisional. A major part of the clause concerns ’tsho and ’tshos-pa, which I have rendered in terms of its sexual denotation, and not as ‘livelihood’, or any of its other possible meanings.47
From a supplement (yan-lag) to the dice statutes: decision in response to a petition dispatched (dgyigs) from the place [seat] of the exterior minister to the place of the judge[s] (zhal-ces-pa) of the court retinue: in previous dice edicts, if a married woman is stolen or captured by another, as regards her sexual activity (’tshos-pa) up to the present, is she returned to the care of her previous husband (bdag-po), or, not being separated from her [present] sexual activity, is a human loan to be given (myi skyin stsal)? How do you command?
According to the replies concerning the dice statutes of the horse year, if the woman’s husband and owner are unable to secure her sale, and the thieves and abductors and so forth are unable, the judicial punishment of her present defilers (’tshos-pa rnams)48 will be decided by means of dice. As for the woman herself, do not subsequently separate her from her sexual activity, but leave her with her defilers. There are no dice for men, fields and houses, but (gyis) if they give a human loan (myi skyin na), they must each give one that is commensurate.
46 Nor-bu’s work is excerpted in BSOD-NAMS TSHE-RING 2004: 381. 47 For the range of meaning of ’tsho and related words, along with examples from Old Tibetan texts, see STEIN 1973: 422-23. 48 While ‘defilers’ is an unfortunate translation due to the considerable baggage it carries, ‘sexual partners’ ignores the fact that the woman has been kidnapped, and ‘rapists’ would be indicated by another Tibetan term, byi-ba. This may be a case where vulgarity is not a failure to communicate, but an accurate translation of the Tibetan. In point of fact, another Old Tibetan document, a wooden slip from Miran, reveals that there was a law for punishing rape committed by soldiers, and that justice was administrated directly by the general (dmag-pon) and the ‘inspector’ (spyan). The slip reads, ‘rapist dispatched to the general and inspector to try according to the great law’ (byi ba bgyis pa khrims che la thug pa // dmag pon dang/ spyan gis dbyongs dkyigs [la] gsol cig. TLTD2: 455). Reading this same fragment, CHAB-SPEL (1989: 139-40) glosses the final gsol as gsod, and thus interprets this slip as sending the rapist to his death. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 43
According to the red dot (myig-mar) [instructions], the precedent (dpe) of the dice statutes of the horse year is not really clear. Therefore, even if she is one who has no husband, and someone accuses (sun-pas) her of subsequently having sex and coupling (’du-pa), this being harmful, it is proper to act in this way according to the replies concerning the dice statutes of the horse year: concerning her sewing and weaving (?), (kha-tshem dang phang-tshem pa), 49 and concerning her sexual activity up until now, if there has been none whatsoever, it will be decided by means of dice between the woman herself and the one who disputes the validity of the claim (tha-snyad ’dog-ma). 50 It is appropriate that she herself be returned.
If one decides by means of dice the legal punishment for the men who forcibly stole her and abruptly (thugs thub-tu) sold her, is she herself to be separated from her sexual activity/ defilement or not? If it does not appear clearly according to the dice statutes, what is to be done?
According to the red dot [instructions], the judge replied that if a woman with[out]51 a husband is abducted and stolen and so forth by others, this is summarised (’du ’du) in the above example by the red dot [instructions].
According to the red notch [instructions], act in accordance with the replies concerning the dice statutes of the horse year.
sho tshigs gyI yan lag las / pho brang khor gyi zhal ces pe sar [nas] zhus pa/ phyI lon sa nas dgyIgste zhus pa / mchId gyis bcade zhus pe’i zhus lan / bka’ sho’I sngan rol du pud med khyIm thab mchIs pa gzhan gyi brkus phrog nas / da’ ltar ’tshos pa lta bo / bdag po snga ma [stsa] ngo lendu stsal tam / ’tshos myI dpral bar myI skyin stsal tam jI jI52 ltar ’tshal / rta’I lo’I sho tshigs gyI zhus lan las ’pyung ba’ / bud med bdag po dang / dpang pos53 ’tshong la dpang54 pa’/ ma lags pa /
49 This may have to be interpreted in the sense of marriage, where, as in many other ritual contexts, the spindle (phang) symbolizes the woman. In this sense, kha- tshem may have to do with one who is betrothed according to oral agreement, while phang-tshem may have to do with one who is betrothed by means of ritual. This, however, is pure speculation. 50 For an explanation of this phrase, see TAKEUCHI 1995: 161. 51 Though the negative ma is crossed out here, it should have been left to stand, as the present sentence refers back to a line above that clearly refers to unmarried women. 52 Formal (i.e., non-grammatical) duplication from end of line to beginning of next; see note on orthography. 53 Read dbang-pos. 54 Read dbang. 44 BRANDON DOTSON
phrog pa dang brkus pa lastsogs pa myi / dpang55 pas ’tshos pa rnams khrIn ni shos chod / bud med dngos nI slad gyis / [slad]’tshos pa dang ’tsho myI dpral par gzhag / / myI zhIng khyIm la sho ma mchIs gyis / myi skyin na tshad ’dra re re phob shIg / / myIg mar las rta’I lo’I [lo] sho tshIgs gyi dpe ’a gsel ba’ lagste / ’dI lta bu khyIm thab ma mchIsu lags gyis gyang / khong ta sun pas slar ’tsho zhIng ’du pa’ la myI phan bas / rta’I lo’I sho tshIgs shus las56 ’dI bzhIn mdzad / pe’I rîgs / kha tshem dang phang tshem pa lta bo da’ ltar ’tshos pa lta bo nî/ cang ma lags gyIs / tha snyad ’dog ma’ dang / mo reng nI shos chod par yang bas / dngos nI lendu stsal pe’I rîgs / myI dpang57 par brkus pa dang / thugs thubdu btsongspa’î rnams / khrIn ni shos chod na / dngos ’tshos dpral ’am myI dpral sho tshigs las gsang las gsang bar myi ’byung na jI ltar ’tshal / myIg mar las zhal ce pas zhus pa / bud med khyim thab [ma] mchIs pa las / gzhan phrog pa dang brkus pa lastsogste / sngar myIg mar gong du gsol pe’i nang ’du ’du zhIng mchIs // kha mar las rta’I lo’î sho tshigs gyî zhu lan las ’byung ba’ [’tsho] bzhIn ’tshol cIg //
In the first part of this clause, the judges agree to decide by means of dice the punishment for the married woman’s captors. Pragmatically, perhaps, the judges do not attempt to forcibly reclaim the woman for her husband, as he has already failed in this. They hold out the possibility of a repayment in kind, a ‘human loan’, as recompense for the husband. Incidentally, this type of practice was also followed in early twentieth century Tibet when a man and a woman belonging to different lords were married. In such a case, if the woman went to live with the man, the man’s lord was expected to give her lord one of his own female bondservants in return as a ‘human trade’ (mi brje) (GOLDSTEIN 1986: 106). I know of no such examples, however, where such a ‘trade’ between lords resulted from a marriage by capture. The second part of the clause is more interesting, as it deals with unmarried women who are captured, and therefore appears to stand witness to the practice of marriage by capture at an early stage in Tibetan history. This type of marriage is known today in many parts of the Himalayas among Tibetan ethnic groups.58 The second part of the clause is not as clear as the first part, and the translation is uncertain. One of its most striking aspects is the apparent concern it
55 Read dbang. 56 Read zhus-lan. 57 Read dbang. 58 See, for example, VINDING 1998: 225-27, and KIND 2002: 285. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 45 shows with chastity, where dice are prescribed to resolve a dispute of this nature. The mention of a woman being forcibly kidnapped and sold is echoed in other Old Tibetan documents concerned with marriage. One famous document, PT 1083, contains a sealed, official reply to a petition by the Chinese residents of Sha-chu requesting that the Tibetan and Sum-pa ministers no longer take Chinese women as brides (mchis-brang du ’tshal-ba), particularly because they take them under false pretexts (snyad-bthags) and make them serve as bondservants (bran). The Chinese express a desire to be like the Mthong-khyab people, and ‘not allow their women to marry others’ (i.e., maintain racial endogamy) (mthong khyab gyi bu sring lta bu / gzhan du gnyen ’tshal du myi gnang ba dang sbyar zhing. PT 1083, ll. 5-6). The Tibetan minister contemptuously rejects the request, and the title on the back of the dispatch reads, perhaps sarcastically, ‘the seal [of the dispatch] granting the Chinese good marriages’. 59 Beyond showing how women could be horribly mistreated after marriage, this document paints a fascinating picture of interracial marriage relations in Sha-cu under Tibetan rule. It reveals that the Mthong-khyab, an ethnic group identified perhaps with the Tongjia people (RONG 1990-1991), practiced racial endogamy. It also reveals that there were marriages between Tibetan and Sum-pa men and Chinese women, and that the Chinese were uncomfortable with this arrangement, and particularly with the servitude of their women to their new overlords. The clauses in ‘Replies’ that concern the legal status of women partly confirm the approach to women found in Old Tibetan marriage by sale documents. A man’s wife was viewed, legally at least, as his property, and he was referred to as her owner (bdag-po, dbang-po). It appears from clause III that a woman did not have the right to break off a marriage without her husband’s consent. Further, should she wish to break off the marriage and return to her natal home, it was incumbent upon her family to provide the husband with a suitable replacement (glud). In the case of a married woman being kidnapped, she is literally ‘robbed’ (phrog) or ‘stolen’ (brkus) from her husband. This case is parallel with the last in that the husband is due a replacement, but this time as a ‘human loan’ from his wife’s captors. In addition, the captors face legal punishment, decided by means of dice. The final section of the second clause, where a
59 TAKEUCHI (1990: 177-78) reproduces this document in the course of his analysis of its structure. 46 BRANDON DOTSON dispute over an unmarried woman’s chastity is decided by means of dice, can also be read as a matter concerning the integrity of a woman as a marriageable commodity, though traditionally this has never been a major concern in Tibetan society.
The Legal Status of Religious Estates
Clause IX (ll. 303-20) concerns not only the legal status of loans made by a monastic estate, but the legal status of religious estates and their subjects in general. The clause is quite remarkable, as it demonstrates that the Buddhist monastic estates and temples enjoyed little, if any, legal protection over and above that accorded to other Tibetan subjects. As this clause necessitates a rethinking of the Tibetan Empire’s approach to monastic estates, it will be useful to first review the state of our knowledge on the imperial legislation of Buddhist monasteries and temples. Our most reliable knowledge about the legal and tax status of the Buddhist community in imperial Tibet comes from inscriptions. The most important of these is of course the Bsam-yas Pillar inscription and the documents that accompanied it. These were composed by Khri Srong-lde-btsan (742-c. 800) around the year 779, after the foundation of Bsam-yas Monastery. The pillar inscription itself is very brief, and on the topic of government support for the temples of Ra-sa and Brag-mar and so forth it only states: ‘as to the provisions allotted, they will be neither reduced nor diminished.’ (yo byad spyard/ pa’ yang/ de las myi dbrI myi bskyung bar bgyI’o/) (LI AND COBLIN 1987: 188, ll. 7-9). The specific nature of these provisions is explained in the first of the two edicts (bka’-gtsigs) that accompanied the Bsam-yas Pillar. This is essentially a more detailed version of the carved inscription on the pillar, and lists the names of those who swore to uphold the edict. The passage in question states:
The estates (rkyend) allotted to provision the three jewels at those temples are of a suitable amount, and having been bestowed by the authority (bla), they will be neither reduced nor diminished. (gtsug lag khang de rnams su dkond mchog gsum gyi yo byad sbyord ba’i rkyend kyang ran pa ’ong par dpags te bla nas phul ba las/ nam zhar kyang mi dbri mi bskyung bar bgyis so/ KhG: 371).60
60 See also the translation in RICHARDSON 1998 [1980]: 92. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 47
As is most often the case with Old Tibetan texts of this nature, there is little detail about how the monasteries were actually supplied and administrated. This, however, is elaborated in post-dynastic sources, in particular the Sba bzhed. The system for supporting the religious estates (lha-ris), according to the Sba bzhed, was set up almost entirely by Ye-shes Dbang-po, the first Tibetan abbot of Bsam-yas Monastery. In fact, the narrative suggests that the abbot went too far in his support of the nascent monastic community, stating that he fled to Lho-brag because of opposition to his plans for reform. Among the reforms we find those listed in the following passage:
Thereafter, through Ye-shes Dbang-po’s foresight, and in order to establish the supports of the church (dkon-mchog) in perpetuity, one hundred subject households were allotted to the church, and three subject households to each monk. The subjects of the religious estates (lha-ris) were no longer controlled by the authority (bla), but control over them was entrusted to the sa gha. (slad kyi ye shes dbang po mngon shes dang ldan pas/ dkon mchog gi rten yun du gnas pa’i ched du/ dkon mchog gi rten la ’bangs mi khyim brgya/ ban de res la ’bangs mi khyim gsum gsum du bcad/ ’bangs lha ris phal bla nas dbang mi bya bar chad nas/ dbang dge ’dun la bskur nas/).61
A similar passage is found in the Dba’ bzhed, which goes into considerably more detail about how the legislation actually worked. The passage is somewhat clearer in the form in which it is preserved in KhG, however, so I will quote this passage here instead.62
[Ye-shes Dbang-po] requested that two hundred subject households be allotted to the Three Jewels, and three subject households be allotted to each monk, and that authority being entrusted to the sa gha, the subjects, men and fields of the religious estates should not be controlled by the authority (bla), and that this should be so in perpetuity… Considering from whom the subjects of the religious estate should be taken—the military (rgod), autonomous fiefs (rang-rje),63 those in possession of an internal tax document (khab-so nang-yig can),64 close
61 See transcription in STEIN 1961b: 53-54. See also the translation in HOUSTON 1980: 66. 62 For a rough translation and commentary on this passage in the Dba’ bzhed, see WANGDU AND DIEMBERGER 2000: 75-76. 63 This reading of rang-rje follows Wangdu and Diemberger’s reading of rang- rje’u (WANGDU AND DIEMBERGER 2000: 75, n. 278). 64 The term khab-so appears to refer in general to the tax office/revenue office (khab-so) and its functionaries (khab-so-pa, khab-so dpon-sna) (LI AND COBLIN 48 BRANDON DOTSON
relatives (thugs-gnyen)65 or the good estates—[they decided] that the lord’s estates (rje’i-zhing) were suitable, and the overseer (gnang- chen),66 ’Bri Khri-’jam Gung-ston, took it in sections and completely divided it.
dkon cog gsum la ’bangs khyim nyis brgya gang zag ban dhe re la ’bangs khyim gsum gyi thang du gcad de dbang dge ’dun la bskur nas lha ris kyi ’bangs mi zhing la bla nas dbang mi mdzad par bgyis na nam du yang brtan zhing legs zhes gsol ba dang. . . rkyen ris kyi ’bangs ni rgod dang rang rje dang khab so’i nang yig can dang thugs gnyen dang gzhi bzang po ’tshal las su sa bzung/ rje’i zhing ni gang zag do ’tshal las gnang chen ’bri khri ’jam gung ston gyis bus bzung ba bzhin du bcad/ (KhG: 382, ll. 6-10, 12-15).
This passage suggests that the religious estates enjoyed functional legislative autonomy under Khri Srong-lde-btsan, and also states that their land grants issued from the emperor himself. The fact that the monasteries enjoyed legislative autonomy tells us little, however, about the legal and tax status of the monastic estates. The Skar-chung Pillar and accompanying edict, which are essentially Khri Lde-srong-btsan’s ratification of his father’s Bsam- yas edicts, offer further insight. They both appear to date to the latter half of his reign (c. 800-815),67 and RICHARDSON (1998 [1977]: 71)
1987: 123-25). The present clause, therefore, refers to one in possession of an internal document (nang-yig) issued by the revenue office. Such document would presumably exempt its bearer from unwanted ad-hoc taxes and tithes such as those in support of establishing a monastery. 65 Thugs-gnyen, literally ‘heart relative’, perhaps refers to the hereditary aristocracy, or more explicitly to the near relatives of the Tibetan Emperor, but its definition is far from certain. The phrase khab-so’i thug-nyen appears in the entry for 722 in the Old Tibetan Annals (BACOT et al 1940-46: 23, 46). 66 Translating the Prophecy of Sa ghavardhana, Thomas renders gnang-chen ‘important personages’ (TLTD1: 60, n.6). In this case, however, it clearly refers to a specific position or post. The spelling and abbreviation make it doubtful that this refers to the great minister of the interior (nang-blon chen-po), and the name ’Bri Khri-’jam Gung-ston appears nowhere in the list of ministers of the interior in the Bsam-yas edict preserved in KhG. The Dba’ bzhed, however, clarifies the term considerably. In a passage where Ye-shes Dbang-po dissuades Khri Srong-lde-btsan from allotting seven households to each monk in favour of three, he argues that ‘some gnang-chen would be abandoned by their sne-bran’ (WANGDU AND DIEMBERGER 2000: 75). Reading sne-bran as a type of bondservant, it is clear that the worry is that they would abandon their estates. As seen from the passage above, the estates are managed by the gnang-chen, but owned by the emperor. Therefore ‘overseer’ seems an adequate translation. 67 On the dates of his reign and the chronology of events surrounding his succession, see DOTSON forthcoming c. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 49 proposes c. 812 as a likely date for the inscription. The following passage is from lines 48-51 of the Skar-chung Pillar inscription.
According to the custom upheld by my forebears and my descendants of neither debasing nor destroying the estates designated for the Three Jewels, they are administered according to what appears in the earliest (mgo-nan) register of households (// yab mes dbon sras gang gI ring la yang rung ste/ dkon mchog gsum gyI rkyen bcad pa’i rnams kyang ma dma’s ma zhIg pa’i chos su// lha rIs kyi khyIm yIg gI mgo nan las ’byung ba bzhIn du chis mdzad do//)68
This passage suggests that the religious estates were subject to government administration (chis),69 but that they enjoyed a discount in as much as they were administered according to their original allotment of subject households and not the current tally, which would presumably include a greater number of households. In this way they seem to have enjoyed a privileged tax status in that their growth was not factored in to their tax obligation. The passage also reveals that estates kept records of their subject or tenant households, and that these records were called ‘household registers’ (khyim-yig). The Skar-chung Edict, preserved in KhG, goes into considerably more detail regarding the status of the Buddhist clergy and their property.
Monks shall not be awarded as the bondservants (bran) of others. They will not be punished with suppression, and [if] they are involved in a household’s legal punishment (khrin), the charge (gyod) shall not include them. We, the father and the son, have indeed so granted to those officiant-donees (mchod-gnas). 70 Never will we eschew or renounce the offerings and the established supports of the Three Jewels at the emperor’s court. Never will they not act as officiant-donees. In short, in the emperor’s court and in the realm of Tibet, there will never be any manner of renouncing or going without the Three Jewels, whether in the reigns of my ancestors or my descendants. Never will those estates (rkyen) allotted to the Three Jewels deteriorate, be des- troyed or not practice the Dharma.
68 From transliteration in LI AND COBLIN 1987: 320, ll. 48-51. For translations, see LI AND COBLIN 1987: 328 and RICHARDSON 1985: 81. 69 On the meaning of chis and tshis, see RICHARDSON 1998 [1969]: 224 and IMAEDA 1980. 70 The term mchod-gnas could be translated more literally as ‘person worthy of offerings’. It signals a ritual relationship that marks off the religious preceptor as the receiver of prestations, generally from a lay ruler or benefactor (yon-bdag). See, most recently, SEYFORT RUEGG 2004. 50 BRANDON DOTSON
rab tu byung ba’i rnams gzhan gyi bran du mi sbyin/ nan gyis mi dbab/ khyim pa’i khrin la gtags te gyod la mi gdags shing / nged yab sras kyis mchod gnas su gnang ba bzhin du byas te/ btsan pho’i/ pho brang na dkond cog gsum gyi rten btsugs cing / mchod pa yang gud du spang zhing bskar re/ mchod gnas su myi bya re/ mdor na/ btsan pho’i/ pho brang dang bod khams na/ dkond cog gsum myed pa dang spang ba’i thabs ji yang bya re/ yab mes dbon sras gang gi ring la yang rung ste/ dkond cog gsum gyi rkyen bcad pa’i rnams kyang / ma dams ma zhig pa’i chos mi bya re/ (KhG: 411).71
This passage reveals that the grants allotted to the Buddhist clergy were given in perpetuity and at a fixed rate that could not be lowered. Further, it reveals a certain level of legal immunity on the part of monks in that they were exempted from legal punishments (khrin) involving their houses. This passage is also interesting because it suggests that monks did not necessarily live only in monasteries, but could, and indeed did, live as householders. The Lcang-bu Inscription, issued by Khri Lde-srong-btsan’s son, Khri Gtsug-lde-brtsan (reigned 815-841), is essentially a charter for Lcang-bu Temple. On the topics of legislation and tax, the edict states:
He arranged for four monks to reside there and fully apportioned servants of the estate, fields and pastures, religious accoutrements, wealth, cattle and so forth. It serves as a perpetual gift of Khri Gtsug- lde-brtsan. Even the name of this temple was given by the Btsan-po’s order. He attached it to the back of his tutelary temple, ’On-cang-do, and ordered that it be administrated by the authority (bla). The wealth and subjects of the religious estate will not be taxed, and they are not subject to fines, punishments and so forth. They are granted the status of a great religious estate.
dge slong bzhI gnas par sbyar nas// rkyen kyI bran dang/ zhIng ’brog dang/ lha cha dang/ nor rdzas dang/ rkang ’gros las stsogs pa/ tshang bar bcad de// btsan po khri gtsug lde brtsan gyi sku yon rgyun myI ’chad par byed do// gtsug lag khang ’dI’i mtshan yang// btsan po’i bka’ zhal gyIs btags ste/ ‘on cang do’i thugs dam gyI gtsug lag khang chen po’i mjug la gdags shIng/ chis kyang/ bla nas mdzad par// bka’s gnang// lha rIs kyi ’bangs dang/ dkor la/ khral myI dbab pa dang/ khwa dang/ chad ka myi bzhes pa las stsogs pa yang// lha rIs chen po’i thang du// bka’s gnang ngo//72
71 See also the translation by TUCCI (1950: 53-54). 72 From transliteration in LI AND COBLIN 1987: 302-03, ll. 17-31. See also the translations in LI AND COBLIN 1987: 308-09 and RICHARDSON 1985: 97-99. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 51
This very insightful passage reveals the precise nature of the material support necessary for the establishment of a Buddhist temple and it also reveals a good deal about the temple’s tax status. It demonstrates that the religious estate was tax-exempt (khral myi dbab), and enjoyed immunity from fines (khwa) and punishment (chad-ka). This may be due to its status as a particular class of religious estate, namely a ‘great religious estate’ (lha-ris chen-po), though this connection is not made explicitly in the edict. The ‘Inventory of Yu-lim Gtsug-lag-khang’, in PT 997, contains a ‘record’ (thang-yig) of the religious estate’s holdings. Records such as these were deposited in an inventory (dkar-chag), which was copied and kept by various authorities (RICHARDSON 1998 [1992]: 280-82). PT 997 also reveals that Yu-lim Gtsug-lag-khang, and presumably other religious estates, fell under the jurisdiction of a number of petty functionaries, and that while the temple received gifts (yon), it also received fines (khwa), punishments (chad-ka) and reprimands (bla-snon) (RICHARDSON 1998 [1992]: 280-82). This obviously contrasts with the ‘great religious estate’ of Lcang-bu, and suggests that there was a hierarchy of privilege concerning religious estates. Having reviewed these sources on the legal and tax status of religious estates in the Tibetan Empire, it is evident that the general picture is that the church was heavily supported by the emperor, and through this support enjoyed a certain degree of administrative autonomy, tax exemption and immunity from fines. The evidence from ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’ generally complicates this picture. Clause IX (ll. 303-20), like all of the clauses in the text, reflects a legal decision made by a judge at the Tibetan court (pho-brang).
[Question:] In earlier dice edicts, legal punishments determined in judgments pertaining to the wealth of the church (bkon-mchog) were decided by means of dice. If the valuable object itself is paid back (i.e., returned), but there are also requests up until the present by various leaders of the religious estate (lha-ris) concerning previously unpaid debts, and if it does not appear clearly [what is to be done] according to this dice edict also, shall we decide by means of dice or not? How do you command?
[Answer:] According to the replies concerning the dice statutes of the horse year, where common subjects take loans from the property of the church and the clergy, or where subjects take a general loan from the church and the clergy, if one relies on the texts of the dharma, it is 52 BRANDON DOTSON
inappropriate to apply the dice edict, so offer it as an offering (sog) or replace the object itself.73 If the item itself is not given, offer its price. As for accrued interest, decide by means of dice. The articles of a monk and subjects of the religious estate are [liable to be] decided by means of dice just like common subjects. Legal punishments (khrin), from legal cases or otherwise, concerning the church on downwards, are decided by means of dice. Concerning loans (bskyIs-pa) from the wealth of the church (lit. ‘Three Jewels’) and interest on a loan (bun- skyed), the ‘gift’ (btang) itself is not decided by means of dice. Concerning interest on a loan and fines and legal punishment, they are decided by means of dice. The personal subjects of a monk are [dealt with] like common [subjects].
[Answer:] According to the red dot (myIg-mar) [instructions], taking as an example the dice statutes of the horse year, accrued interest and legal punishments pertaining to the wealth of the church are decided by means of dice. As not deciding [the loan] itself by means of dice accords with the tax statutes from elsewhere (gud-las), it is fitting to do this without deciding by means of dice.
According to the red notch (kha-mar) [instructions], act in accordance with the replies concerning the dice statutes of the horse year.
bka’ sho’î sngun roldu bkon mchogI dkor pa las zhal ce brtsad bzung pa’I khrin nI shos chod [rkanga’] dkor gyI dngos ’jal pa’ sngar ma phul pe’I skyin pa’ lha rI ’da’ par lha ris gyî dpon snas gsol ba’ dag gyang mchIste / sho tshIgs ’dî las gyang gsang par myi ’byung na shos gcad dam myi gcad ji ltar ’tshal / rta’i lo’I sho tshIgs gyi zhu lan las ’byung ba’ / mgon mchog dang dge’ dun gyi dkor las ’bangs phal la chags pa dang / ’bangs gyI bu lon bkon mchogsdang / dge ’dun sbyI [las] / chags pa dar ma’I gzhung dang gdugs na / bka’ shos gcadu myI rung par ’byung gIs sog ’tshal dngos [rting]74 su phul cIg / dngos dngosu myi ’byor na rîndu phul cIg / gyur dang skyed nI shos gcado / dge slong gI rdzas dang lha ’bangs rnams [gyI] nI ’bangs phal dang ’dra shos gcado / zhal ce lastsogs pa khrin du rma’o ’tshal bkon mchog man cad gyi shos gcado / bkon mchog gsum gyI dkor las bskyIs pa dang bun skyed btang dngos nI shos myI gcado / bun skyed dang chad khrIn nI shos gcado / dge slong sgo sgo’I ’bangs phal dang ’dra’o / / myIg mar las rta’I lo’i sho tshIgs gyI dpe ’ang gsol pa lagste / bkon
73 This presumably alludes to the protocols for lending on interest set out in the M lasarv stiv da-vinaya, for which see SCHOPEN 2004 [1994]: 47-49, 58-61. 74 There is a blue inkspot on this word, and what looks like a na-ro above it. Richardson transcribed this as gting in a partial transliteration found in his papers at the Bodleian Library. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 53
chogi dkor gyî [d]gyur skyed dang khrin nI shos gcad / dngos nI shos myI gcad par sho tshIgs gud las [gtug par ’ang] thun par ’byung bas ’dI yang shos myI gcad par mdzad pa’I rigs / / kha mar las rta’i lo’I sho tshigs [las ’bya] gyI zhu lan [sa] las ’byung ba’ bzhin ’tshol cIg /
The first part of the clause deals with loans taken from the church and the proper method of repayment. Here it appears that the interest can be decided by means of dice. The statement that according to the texts of the Dharma it is inappropriate to apply the dice edict to the loan itself is particularly interesting. On the face of it, it may seem that the sa gha is strictly against making a profit from such loans. However, the next sentence states that interest will be decided by means of dice. As mentioned already, the divination manuals used for mo divination in IOL Tib J 740 reflect a bon-po or bon-po- friendly milieu. Is it possible, then, that the sa gha objects to having their cases decided in such a manner? If so, the authorities have ruled against the sa gha, since the clause goes on to state that in the event that the church is punished due to a legal case or another matter, the punishment is decided according to dice. These considerations, however, are secondary. The clause also states unequivocally that the property and subjects of a monk are treated in exactly the same way as those of a commoner. This is in full agreement with Uray’s observations, based on separate documents, that not only the subjects of a religious estate, but the monks themselves, were subject to military service (URAY 1961: 229).75 It is difficult to resolve this with the information from the edicts and other sources reviewed above. One possibility is that the edicts record only those most privileged of religious estates—the temples of the nobles and the personal projects of emperors—and that they therefore enjoyed a tax and legal status quite separate from common religious estates. This is hinted at in Khri Gtsug-lde-btsan’s designation of Lcang-bu Temple as having the ‘rank of a great religious estate’ (lha-ris chen-po’i thang). It appears to be the case, therefore, that there was a stratified system whereby monastic estates, like imperial administrators, carried gradated ranks to which certain benefits were attached. In conclusion, we must revise the simplified narrative popularized by later histories such as the Sba bzhed. According to this narrative, Dba’ Ye-shes Dbang-po dissuaded Khri Srong-lde-btsan from allotting seven subject households to the support of each monk by
75 See also BECKWITH 1987: 169-70, n. 174. 54 BRANDON DOTSON arguing that it would lead to the destruction of Buddhism in Tibet and the degradation of the royal lineage. Within the narrative, this serves to foreshadow the disastrous consequences brought on by Ral- pa-can’s overzealous allotment of seven households to each monk roughly half a century later. As we can see from the above analysis, there was far more nuance to the Tibetan Empire’s approach to monastic estates. There were probably various ‘ranks’ (thang) of monastic estates, with the ‘great monastic estates’ (lha-ris chen-po) enjoying the greatest benefits. These were the personal projects of the Tibetan Emperors or the temples of those with favour at the court. Lower rank temples and monasteries presumably did not enjoy the same type of lavish support, exemption from fines and so on that these great monastic estates did, and so were subject to the types of procedures detailed in clause IX above.
The Provisioning and Conscription of the Tibetan Imperial Army
Beyond being the period in which Buddhism first took root in Tibet, the Tibetan Empire is perhaps best known as the time of Tibet’s greatest military prowess. During this age, Tibet vied with China for control of the Silk Route, did battle with the Turks, the Türgis, the Arabs, the Nanzhao Kingdom and the Uighurs. To do so, they required a massive army and a system for requisitioning and supplying their soldiers. While numerous articles have been written about the structure of the Tibetan military, and contribute greatly to our understanding of the Tibetan Empire, none to date have shown how the Tibetan army was constituted and supported. Our only knowledge of how troops were levied comes from one terse statement in the Old Tang Annals that states: ‘For collecting warriors they use gold arrows.’ (BUSHELL 1880: 440). The longest and most detailed clause in ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’, clause XI (ll. 331-59), concerns precisely the conscription and provisioning of troops, and describes the system in some detail. It reveals how the Tibetan army was levied and supported, and how provisions were effectively distributed to the troops. The clause, which becomes an enlightening discourse on the policies of imperial Tibet’s army, arises out of a dispute concerning provisions, specifically on what is to be done with the surplus bales of provisions sent by an estate-holder for his bondservants who were conscripted as soldiers.
DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 55
[Question:] From a supplement (yal-ga) to the dice statutes of the tiger76 year: decision dispatched from the judge(s) of the court retinue to the minister of the exterior: in previous dice edicts, [when people] were gathered in the fields (skyar btus) for official duty (rje-blas), the estate holder (gzhi-bu) provisioned them (brdzangs-pa) and they were assigned to official duty as soldiers. Concerning soldier punishment itself, it also arises from the statutes of the dice edict that no legal punishment is meted out. Concerning provisioning soldiers to war, a separate soldier having received [the provisions] (dmag god thob), when they are gathered afterwards and the provisions are given, are they [still] given, or are they given back [to the estate holder]?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions], have the minister of the exterior dispatch [a letter] asking whether gathering them like this is permissible or impermissible.
[Answer:] According to the red dot [instructions], if one adheres to the manual/ code (rtsis-mgo) for gathering soldiers (mun-dmag) and the pronouncements of the authority (bla’i bka’-gsung-ba), all other soldiers are gathered. Concerning their provisioning through planting the harvest, and their provisions falling to someone else, they are put in bales (ltang-bu bab), and, under the soldiers of the thousand-district (stong-sde so’i ’og), they become internal affairs (nang-srid). They then go to be sent as provisions by the group of ten (bcu-tshan) and the tally group (khram-tshan).
Now, as for pursuing the soldiers’ provisions by deciding the soldier fines by means of dice, generally many are also like this. As for the military fine, though his own punishment itself is decided by means of dice, concerning the provisions sent by the estate holder (gzhi-bu), according to the law, the soldiers own them. From when they were first levied from the estate and given in perpetuity (gtan-du stsal), they were the soldiers’ possessions (nor). Although this was so even before the dice edict was issued, when the military punishment (dmag chad) is death or banishment, the judicial punishment extends to one’s entire family (bu-smad kun), but [if] the estate holder does not evade (bda’) provisioning [his soldiers], and if this accords with what is seen (rmyig), interest does not accrue on the loan either. Since an estate holder who up until now evades [provisioning soldiers] will anger all subjects, it is fitting to proceed by deciding by means of dice the provisions as well. If one proceeds by deciding by means of dice in accordance with the above request, an estate holder’s soldiers’
76 ‘Horse’ (rta) was crossed out and replaced, below the line by sta, presumably for tiger (stag). 56 BRANDON DOTSON
[provisions] would not be used up elsewhere (god du ma chud-pas), and whatever of the [estate holder’s] servants (bu-bran) who are suitable to be levied will indeed become soldiers. The provisions will also be gradually paid back, and whether they lose or win, concerning the military punishment, which is like the official punishment, banishment and death and serious legal punishment will be resolved by means of the dice edict. The crop fields (rkya) being resolved by means of the dice edict as well, is it permissible or impermissible not to add [soldiers] to the crop fields?
[Answer:] According to the red notch [instructions], do not grant the military punishments to separate crop fields, but add the soldiers to the estate. Concerning the provisions, do not decide by means of dice the interest on the loans, but return them to the estate holder.
[rta’I] sta lo’I sho tshigs gyI yal ga’ las pho brang khor gyI zhal ces pas / [phyi blon sar] zhal ce’i pe’I sa nas zhus las / phyI blon sar dgyigste mchId gyis bcad pa / /bka’ sho’i sngan roldu / rje blas skyar btuste / gzhI bus brdzangs pa las dmag myI rje blas gcad pa dmag chad dngos nI khrin myi rma bar bka’ sho’i tshigs las gyang ’byungs na / dmagmag rdzangs lta bo / dmag god thob pas / thus slad ma’i tshe ’ang [za] rdzong ’tshalte / [sla] ’tshal tam / slar ’buldu stsal / kha mar las ’di lta bsdu be’i rIgs sam myi rIgs / phyi blon gyIs dbyigste gsol cig / myIg mar las ’byung ba’ / mun dmag btus pe’I rtsis mgo dang bla’I bka’ gsung ba’ dag dang [ga] sbyar na / mun mun77 dmag gzhan kun bsdu / rkyar btab pe’i sgos rdzong ’dI lta bo rdzang gzhan la dbab par nI ltang bur bab pas da’ ltar / stong sde so’i ’og nang srId du bgyis nas bcu tshan dang khram tshan gyIs rdzong ba’ du mchis da’ dmag chad shos khums pe’i dmag rdzong ded pa nI spyi mangdu mchis pa yang ’dra / dmag chad dngos gyI bka’ chad nI shos khums par yang bas na / gzhI pus brdzangs pe’i rdzangs lta bo khrims gyIs dmag myis dpangste78 / thog ma gzhI bo las ’gug pe’i tshe yang gtandu stsal pas dmag myI nor lagste / bka’ sho ma byungdu lags gyIs gyang dmag chad ’gum ’am spyugs na / bu smad kun yang khrIn gyI bka’ chad la / thug pas / gzhI bus rdzangs bdar79 ma mchIs pa lagste ’dI yang rmyig dang sbyar na / bu londu yang myI ’gyur la / da’ ltar gzhI pus bda’ ba’ / yongs ’bangs khrog par ’gyur pas rdzangs gyI rnams gyang shos gcad par mdzad pe’i rIgs / gong du gsol ba gzhIn shos gcad par mdzad na / gzhI po’i mun dmag gyang godu ma chud pas / bu bran btu pe’i ’os mchIs pa mchIs nI dmag myi ’ang bab / rdzongs gyang nyI rimdu du
77 Formal (i.e., non-grammatical) duplication from end of line to beginning of next; see note on orthography. 78 Read dbangste. 79 Read bda’. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 57
’jalte pham yang rab na / bka’ chad dang ’dra bar gyur pa dmag chad lta bo ’gum spyugs a thug pa yang khrin chen po yang bka’ shos/ khums / rkya ’ang bka’ shos dgum zhIng rkya yuldu ma bsnan pe’i / rIgs sam myi rIgs / / kha mar las dmag chad rnams rkya god stsal par myI gnang gIs dmag nI gzhi la snon cîg rdzangs [gya] ni bu londu gyur pas shos ma chod gyis gzhi bo slar stsol cig /
The long response from the red dot instructions reveals a highly organized system for provisioning the soldiers. When the Tibetan army came to levy troops from an estate for official duty (rje-blas) as soldiers, the estate holder (gzhi-bu) was not only forced to allow his bondservants (bran) to be taken as troops, but was also expected to provision them with the crops from his fields. A certain amount was likely required for each bondservant, and it is this that was sent to his thousand-district (stong-sde) in a bale. There, the ‘group of ten’ (bcu-tshan) and the ‘tally group’ (khram-tshan) recorded its receipt and sent it along. Holding the individual estate holders responsible for the provisioning of bondservants conscripted from their estates as soldiers meant that, theoretically, every soldier would be provided for. Further, as the system would not work unless enough bondservants were left to work the fields, it seems, on the surface at least, to be a sustainable model. The clause also reveals that it was not uncommon for estate- holders to evade the conscription tax, and that punishment for doing so was the death or banishment of an estate-holder’s entire family. This implies that the tax was viewed as an onerous one, and that it depleted the estate holder of valuable labour. The system of troop conscription and provisioning described in this document is highly sophisticated and goes some way towards explaining how Tibet managed to levy and support such a large and successful army. Without the requisite bureaucratic infrastructure, and without the threat of official punishment for those evading these taxes, such a system would have been impossible. PT 1089, a Dunhuang document dealing with the order of rank (gral-thabs) in Sha-cu (Shazhou νɺ, i.e., Dunhuang), lists several officials who presumably would have been involved in these and other affairs. These are the great minister in charge of pastoral estates of the upper and lower regions (stod smad gyI phyug-ma’I gzhIs-pon chen-po) (l. 37), the great tax official (khral-po[n] chen-po) (l. 38), the inspector official of estates (gzhIs-pon spyan) (l. 41), the deputy official of estates (gzhIs-pon ’og-pon) (l. 42), and the tally official (khram-pa) 58 BRANDON DOTSON
(l. 43). The document also names the appointment of one man as both district tax official and as official in charge of estates’ provisions (gzhi-rdzongs), a combination of offices that makes per- fect sense given that provisioning, as demonstrated by clause XI of IOL Tib J 740, can be regarded as an onerous tax.80 The document also sheds some light on the nature of the administrative units stong-sde and tshan, which have been discussed by URAY (1961, 1982), UEBACH (1994) and TAKEUCHI (1994). Particularly, the clause above confirms that thousand-districts (stong- sde) were not concerned only with military matters, and cannot be regarded as brigades. They levied provisions, processed them and sent them along. Further, these tasks were assigned to units within the thousand-district, in this case the ‘group of ten’ (bcu-tshan) and the ‘tally group’ (khram-tshan). In his study of tshan as the subordinate units of the thousand- districts, TAKEUCHI (1994: 856) distinguished two types of tshan: the twenty subordinate units of a thousand-district made up of about fifty households each, and the various types of ‘compound tshan’ units. The former unit, Takeuchi argued, was the equivalent of the Chinese unit jiang ź. Among the latter, Takeuchi identified dog- tshan, khram-tshan, brgya-tshan and dar-tshan. He was not entirely clear of the relationship of these latter types of tshan to the former subordinate unit tshan, and stated that it ‘may be the case that these units in compound terms were selected and formed from the members of each tshan for particular purposes’ (TAKEUCHI 1994: 855). Among these functions, he noted that the khram-tshan and brgya-tshan seem to own property.81
80 ‘Cang mdo tse was appointed tax official of one district and [official in charge of] estates’ provisions (gzhi-rdzongs).’ (cang mdo tse sde gcIg gi khral pon dang gzhi rdzongsu bskos so. PT 1089, l. 59; LALOU 1955: 177-78, 182-84). 81 Takeuchi arrived at this conclusion based on the appearance in numerous Old Tibetan boundary documents of phrases such as ‘to the west it borders on the juniper field of the khram-tsan of Da myi bong tshe’ (nub da myi bong tshe khram tsan kyi shug zhing la thug. IOL Tib J 1410; TAKEUCHI 1994: 854). If we proceed with the generally safe assumption that the Tibetan ruler enjoyed at least nominal ownership of all the land, then these tshan groups cannot be regarded as landowners, but must be seen as usufructuaries. Alternatively, it is possible that these boundary documents list neighbouring fields not by their usufructuaries, but by those whose authority they fell under in terms of thousand-district accounting. The latter possibility would make sense in the context of an official document dealing with the jurisdiction of the tally. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 59
The explicit mention in IOL Tib J 740 of a ‘group of ten’ (bcu-tshan), along with the ‘tally group’ (khram-tshan), and the dog- tshan, brgya-tshan and dar-tshan mentioned by Takeuchi, suggest how these ‘compound tshan’ units differed from the ‘standard tshan’ units of fifty households. Though also subordinate to the thousand- district, the compound tshan units were made up of various numbers: we have seen already the ‘group of ten’ (bcu-tshan) and the ‘group of one hundred’ (brgya-tshan). This indicates that tshan in these compounds does indeed mean ‘group’, or ‘team’. Whether or not members of these groups came also from the same ‘standard tshan’ or jiang ź is probably secondary, though in the case of a team of one hundred, this is obviously impossible. This partly resolves the relationship between the ‘standard tshan’/jiang ź and the ‘com- pound tshan’ teams or groups.82
CONCLUSIONS
The Old Tibetan document IOL Tib J 740, comprising a mo divination text and a legal text entitled ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’, is of great importance for a number of reasons. The connection between the divination text and the legal text reveals that local magistrates employed divination dice and divination manuals to decide legal disputes. In doing so, the method by which cases were decided overlapped significantly with ritual technologies employed by ritual specialists for healing and prognostication. Whether such ritual specialists indeed had a role in the administration of legal justice in these and other cases is unclear. The content of the divination text reveals a truly ‘imperial’ pantheon of deities from whose mouths the prognoses come, in that the text names territorial deities of several different regions. This reveals the creation of a pan-Tibetan pantheon of divinities called into existence by the Tibetan Empire’s expansion and its administrative centralization.
82 This essentially confirms one of Takeuchi’s reservations: ‘we still have to hold as a possibility that tshan in these compound terms have no direct connection with the administrative units tshan and was simply a common word meaning ‘group’, because there is a case where tshan was apparently used as a common noun…’ (TAKEUCHI 1994: 860, n. 32). 60 BRANDON DOTSON
While in modern Tibetan legal practice it appears that dice, ordeal and chance were employed as a last resort when the facts of a case were disputed or unclear, this is not the case in the clauses of ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’. It is evident from the repeated references to earlier dice edicts, such as that of the horse year, that the government issued norms for how to employ dice in legal cases. The clauses of IOL Tib J 740 arise from issues that were not covered by these norms and required clarification. They plainly include instances where dice decided not only disputed facts, but the final outcome of the case, and the punishment of a guilty party. The use of dice was therefore not a desperate measure, but a standard practice codified by legal manuals. Whether recourse to dice in such decisions is interpreted as revealing the will of the gods or being simply a matter of chance, in either case the dice act as an accepted authority exterior to the disputants and the court itself. In this, the will of the gods or the luck of the dice stands over and above the legal process itself. This def- lects the burden of agency from the officials of the court and presumably diffuses the conflict between the disputants. The sets of questions and answers found in ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’ expand our understanding of several facets of the social history of the Tibetan Empire. In both form and content, ‘Replies’ emphasizes the centralization of the Tibetan Empire. Faced with legal cases that were not covered by the various legal manuals at their disposal, local magistrates brought their problem to the minister of the exterior (phyi-blon), who in turn sent the matter to the judges of the court retinue. The judges then dispatched either a full decision or a set of guidelines for deciding a case, as in the many instances in the text when the judges instruct that a case should be decided by means of dice. The numerous clauses dealing with debt, loans and interest reveal the extent to which the individual was beholden to the legal, fiscal and bureaucratic machinery of imperial Tibet. The clauses dealing with marriage, separation and kidnapping or marriage by capture further reveal important aspects of Tibet’s social history. The long clause on the legal status of religious estates reveals that monastic estates, the clergy and their subjects were legislated in virtually the same manner as other Tibetan subjects and estates. This leads to the conclusion that the status of monastic estates, like the status of individuals in imperial Tibet, was highly stratified, and that only the most important monastic estates enjoyed the special treatment that came with royal patronage. The final clause of the DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 61 document reveals how the Tibetan army was levied and provisioned, thus partially solving one of the great mysteries of Tibet’s success as a major military force. Taken together with other Old Tibetan legal and bureaucratic documents, IOL Tib J 740 contributes to our understanding of the manner in which the Tibetan Empire constituted itself socially and politically. With a greater understanding of Tibet’s social history, we can move beyond simple platitudes about the rapid growth of the empire, and be far more precise in charting the expansion of the empire and its reach into nearly every aspect of Tibetan life. Such inquiries into imperial Tibet’s legal and bureaucratic culture, along with research into its military and religious traditions, move us towards a social history of Tibet. Such a history will add some nuance and detail to our understanding of the dynamic processes by which a small kingdom in Yar-lung grew to become one of the dominant empires in the history of Central Eurasia.
TRANSLITERATION
What follows is a transliteration of the second part of IOL Tib J 740, ‘Replies concerning the dice statutes from the tiger year dice edict’. An edited transliteration of the entire document, including the mo divination manual, can be found on the website of Old Tibetan Documents Online and IMAEDA AND TAKEUCHI et al. 2007: 334-45. I present my own transliteration here both for ease of reference and to demonstrate the pattern of use of the double and single tsheg in the text. As mentioned above, I have edited the text as lightly as possible, adding glosses only where they seemed absolutely necessary. Heavier editing can be found in the OTDO transliteration. To review, editing conventions are as follows:
I Reverse gi-gu. î Indiscriminate gi-gu. [abc] Intentional deletions in the original. abcabcabc Text intercalated below line.
IOL Tib J 740 (2)
62 BRANDON DOTSON
238 #:// stagI: lo’I: bka’I: sho: byung. be’i: sho: tshIgs: gyI: zhus: 83 lan./ ngo. prang. nas: mchIspa:// 239 # :/ stagI: lo’I: sho: tshigs: las:/ / stagI: lo’I: dbyar. sla: [’pyar.] ’prIng: po: tshes: drug: phan. cad./ 240 nyes: pyung: ’o: ’tshal:/ shos: chod. ces: byung: na./ snga. dro: phyi: dro: dag. las: mchId. myi: mjal: pa: mchis. na/ 241 snga. dro: phyi: phyI: dro: gang. [brtsan.] gI: tshigs: brtsan. par. bzung. par. ’tshal:/ / kha: mar. las: tshes: drugi./ 242 gtugs: pas: gyI: tshigs: gyIs: zung: shIg:/ sho: tshigs: snga: ma: dag. las: myI: zhIng. dang. khyIm: sho: ma:/ 243 ma: mchIs: pa: skad: gsang. par. ’byung. na./ myI: zhing. khyim: la: shos: gcad. dam: myi: gcad:/ mchid. myi: 244 myI: mjal: pa: mang: na: mchId: myi: mjal: pa: phal: che:/ shos: gcad. dam: myI: gcad. ji. ltar. ’tshal:/ 245 zhIng. khyim: myI: stagî: lo’i: sho: tshigs: dang. spyor. la: [jI:] zhing. khyim: myi: ji: ’ogdu: song. yang. shosmyi: 246 chod. gyIs: slar. bdag. po: stsol: cig:/ par: byung: gIs: de: dang. sbyor. cIg:/ bka’: sho’I: sngun:/ 247 roldu: pud. med. pag: rgod. bgyIste:/ da’: ltar. pha: myIng. la: gnas: [pa:] zhIng: mchIs: pa:/ khyIm: thab. 248 gyis: nI: [drung.] myi: btang: par. gsol:/ pha: ma: dang. dngos: gyIs: nI: thog: ma: yang. mchId. mjal:84 pas: da’:/ 249 rung. yang: mchI. mjal: parmyI: ’byung: gis:/ glud. ’tshal: par: yang: gsol: ba’: mchIsna. ji: ltar. 250 ’tshal:/ / kha: mar: las:/ pardu: rang. reng. ’tshal: pe’I: chad. pa: ni: ma: mchIs:/ dngos: ni khyIm: thab./ 251 stsol: cig/ / bla: ’ogI: bu: londu: gyur. pe’I: rnams: shos: myî: gcado: zhes: byung: na./ bu. lon. gyi:/ 252 gyur: ded. pe’I: mchid. nas: nI:: gyur. yang. bu. lon. shos: myI: gcad: pe’i. nang: ’du. ’du./ khrin. ma: lags./ 253 pas: bka’: shos: myI: gcad. par. gsol: ces: mchI:/ chags: pe’i: khungs: po’I: mchId. nas: ni: bla: 254 ’ogI: bu: lon. shos: myI: gcad. par: ’pyung. gis:/ gyur. shos: myi: gcad. par: yang: myi: ’pyung: 255 la:/ gyur. ces: bgyI: pa’: bu: lon. dngos: sho. ma: lagste:/ sngar: bu: lon: dusu: ma: phul: pe’i: nongs:
83 Read pho-brang. 84 There is a small circle over the ma prefix. DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 63
256 pe’i. chad. par. gyur. pas:/ ’dI: yang: nyes: che: phra: [pa:] ’dra: pas:/ chad. pa: ’gum: spyug: man. cad. 257 la: thug: pa:/ thugs: dpag: mdzad. pe’i: bka’: shos: bcad. par. gsol: ces: ’byung. ’ba’di: rnams: 258 gang: ltar. ’tshal:/ kha: mar. las: byung. ba’: shos: gcad. par: ’tshol: cIg:// nongs: skyon. mchIs: pa: 259 dang:/ ’og: dum: bgyis: pa: lastsogs: pa:/ ’ogdu: tshongsu: bgyis: pa: bu: lon. chagspa. snyadu. dam: rgya. 260 las: khungs: po’I: mchId. nas: nI:/ tshongsu: bgyis: pa[s:] ma: [lagste:] ’am: bu: lon. dngos: chags: pa: 261 chags: pa: ma: lags[te:] pas: shos: gcad. par. gsol:/ 262 ded. pe’i. mchid. nas: nI:/ dam: rgya: brtsan. shos: myi: gcad. par: gsol: ces: mchi: ’dI: nyis: gang: 85 263 ltar. ’tshal:/ bu / kha: mar. las: dpyong. bu: londu: gyur. na. shos: ma: gcad: cIg:// bzhag: btam: [s] lta: 264 po:: shos: myI: gcad: ces: ’byung. ba’/ myi: dang. rkang: ’gros: dang. nor: rdzas: gnag: rta: lastsogs: pa:/ 265 btams: pa: las/ bka’: shogdu: blangs: nas:/ bzhag: pe’i: mchId: nas: ’dI::/ bka’: shos: nI: 266 myI: khums: na:/ dngos: ma: mchIs: na: skyin. khrin: lta: po: shos: dgum: gam. myI dgum:// jI: ltar. ’tshal:/ 267 kha: mar. las: bu: lon. shos: myi: gcad. par: ’byung: bas: shos: myI: gcad. par: ’tshol:: cig:/ 268 sho. tshigs: gyI: yan. lag: las:/ pho: brang. khor: gyi: zhal: cepe: sar: [nas:] zhus: pa:/ phyI: lon. sa: 269 nas: dgyIgste: zhus: pa:/ mchId. gyis: bcade: zhus: pe’i: zhus: lan./ bka’: sho’I: sngan. rol: 270 du: pud. med. khyIm: thab: mchIs: pa: gzhan: gyi: brkus: phrog: nas:/ da’: ltar. ’tshos: pa: lta. 271 bo:/ dbag: po: snga. ma: [stsa:] ngo. lendu: stsal: tam:/ ’tshos: myI: dpral: bar: myI: skyin. stsal: tam: jI: 272 jI: ltar: ’tshal:/ rta’I: lo’I: sho: tshigs: gyI: zhus: lan. las: ’pyung: ba’:/ bud. med. bdag: po: dang./ 273 dpang. pos: ’tshong. la: dpang. pa’:/ ma: lags: pa:/ phrog: pa: dang. brkus: pa: lastsogs: pa: myi:/ 274 dpang. pas: ’tshos: pa: rnams: khrIn. ni: shos: chod./ bud. med. dngos: nI: slad. gyis:/ [slad:]’tshos:
85 Read dpyod. 64 BRANDON DOTSON
275 pa: dang: ’tsho: myI: dpral: par. gzhag:/ / myI: zhIng: khyIm: la: sho: ma: mchIs: gyis:/ myi. skyin. 276 na: tshad. ’dra. re: re: phob. shIg:/ /myIg: mar. las: rta’I: lo’I: [lo:] sho: tshIgs: gyi: dpe ’a: 277 gsel: ba’. lagste:/ ’dI: lta: bu: khyIm: thab: ma: mchIsu: lags: gyis: gyang./ khong. ta. sun. 278 pas: slar. ’tsho. zhIng. ’du: pa’: la: myI: phan. bas:/ rta’I: lo’I: sho: tshIgs: shus: lan. ’dI. bzhIn. mdzad./ 279 pe’I: rîgs:/ kha. tshem: dang: phang: tshem:86 lta: bo: da’: ltar. ’tshos: pa: lta: bo: nî: / cang. ma: lags: 280 gyIs:/ tha: snyad. ’dog: ma’: dang./ mo: reng. nI: shos: chod. par. yang: bas:/ dngos. nI: lendu. stsal: 281 pe’I: rîgs:/ myI: dpang. par. brkus: pa: dang:/ thugs: thubdu: btsongspa’î: rnams:/ khrIn. ni: shos 282 chod. na./ dngos: ’tshos: dpral: ’am: myI: dpral: sho: tshigs: las: gsang. las: gsang: par. 283 myi: ’byung: na. jI: ltar. ’tshal:/ myIg: mar. las: zhal: ce: pas: zhus: pa:/ bud. med. khyim: 284 thab: [ma:] mchIs: pa: las:/ gzhan. phrog: pa: dang. brkus: pa: lastsogste./ sngar. myIg: mar. 285 gongdu. gsol: pe’i: nang. ’du: ’du. zhIng: mchIs:// kha: mar. las: rta’I: lo’î: sho: tshigs: 286 gyî: zhu: lan. las: ’byung: ba’: [’tsho:] bzhIn. ’tshol: cIg:// / chIbs: shul: gong. 287 spa. dang: sde.87 pas:/ zhang. lon. dang. ’tshal: zas: phor. mnos: pa: gum: pa: dang. stor. pa: 288 skyIn. pa’. phab: nas:/ bkye: bskyon: pa’:/ stor. ba’. dang. gumpe’i: mdo: rIs: blar. ma: phul: 289 par. yang: bas: na./ gum: nas: mdo: rIs: ma: phul: pa’: lta: bo:/ phor. [’tshel:] ’tshal: pas: 290 gsol: na:/ bkye: bskyon. lta: bu: chad. khrIn. thebs. lags. zhes: bgyi: pa’. ’dI: lags:/ stor. 291 stor. lta: bo: myIs: nongs: pa: yang. ma: lags:/ gum: pa’: mdo: rIs: phul: ba’: bka’. shos: bcad 292 par. gsol:/ na./ jI: ltar. ’tshal:/ rta’i: sho: tshIgs: las: byung: ba’: mchibs: phor. mnos: pa: dang:
86 tshes? 87 ste? DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 65
293 g.yar. por. btang: ba’. nI: bzhag: btam: pa: dang. ’draste: shos: myI: ’chod./ pho: dang. g.yar. pa: las 294 gum: storte:/ chad. khram: btab. dang. phyi: khungs: dang. nang. khungs: las: chad. pa: nI: shos: gcado:/ 295 zhes: ’byung./ / myIg: mar. las: phor. phog: pa: dang: g.yar. pe’i: skyIn. khrIn:/ rta’i: lo’i 296 zhu: lan. las: shos: gcad. par. ’byung./ gIs: gyang:/ bka’: khrIms: gyis: skyin. ba’: ’da’: 297 bar. ’byung. pas: sbyangste: gum: stordu: gyur. na:/ bla: ‘ogI: bu: londu: ’gyur. pas:/ shos: myi: 298 gcad. pe’i: rIgs:/ zhal: ce pas: zhus: pa: las: mdo: rIs: mchis: mchIs: pa: 299 ma: mchIs: zhes: bya: ba’: nI: stor. pa: la: nI. yong. yang: ma: mchIs:/ gum: ba’: la: yang. 300 chab: gyIs. ’tshal: pa: dang./ khyI: spyang: gIs: ’tshal: pa: dang./ stor. pa: yang: mchIs: pa. 301 zhîg: mchIs: na./ gum: stordu: gyur: tam: ma: gyur. pa’: nI: spyang. be’I: nang: du: ’du: bas: 302 mdo: rIs: mchIs: ma: mchis. pa: myI. rma. be’i: rIgs:/ / kha: mar: las: shos: myI: gcad. 303 par. ’tshol: cIg:/ bka’: sho’î: sngun. roldu. bkon. mchogI: dkor. pa: las: zhal: ce: 304 brtsad. bzung. pa’I: khrin: nI: shos: chod. [rkanga’:] dkor. gyI: dngos: ’jal: pa’: sngar: ma: 305 phul: pe’I: skyin. par. lha: rI. ’da’: par: lha: ris: gyî: dpon. snas: gsol: ba’: dag: gyang. 306 mchIste:/ sho: tshIgs: ’dî: las: gyang. gsang. par. myi: ’byung. na. shos: gcad. dam: myi: gcad. ji: 307 ltar. ’tshal:/ rta’i: lo’I: sho: tshIgs: gyi: zhu: lan. las: ’byung: ba’:/ mgon: mchog: dang. 308 dge’: dun. gyi: dkor. las: ’bangs: phal: la: chags: pa: dang./ ’bangs: gyI: bu: lon: bkon 309 mchogsdang:/ dge: ’dun. spyI:: [la:] pa:/ chags: pa: dar: ma’I: gzhung. dang. gdugs. na./ 310 bka’: shos: gcadu. myI: rung. par. ’byung: gIs: sog: ’tshal: dngos: [st]ong.88 su: phul.
88 There is a blue inkspot on this word, and what looks like a na-ro above it. Richardson transcribed this as gting in a partial transliteration found in his papers at the Bodleian Library (MS. Or. Richardson 44: 130-31). 66 BRANDON DOTSON
311 cIg:/ dngos: dngosu: myi: ’byor: na. rîndu: phul: cIg:/ gyur. dang: skyed. nI: shos: gcado:/ 312 dge: slong. gI: rdzas: dang. lha. ’bangs: rnams: [gyI:] nI: ’bangs: phal: dang. ’dra. shos: 313 gcado:/ zhal: ce: lastsogs: pa: khrin. du: rma’o: ’tshal: bkon: mchog: man. cad: gyi: shos 314 gcado:/ bkon: mchog: gsum: gyI: dkor: las: bskyIs: pa: dang: bun. skyed. btang: 315 dngos: nI: shos: myI: gcado:/ bun: skyed. dang. chad. khrIn. nI: shos: gcado:/ dge: slong. sgo: sgo’I 316 ’bangs: phal: dang: ’dra’o:/ / myIg: mar. las: rta’I: lo’i: sho: tshIgs: gyI: dpe: ’ang: gsol 317 pa: lagste:/ bkon. chogi: dkor: gyî: [d]gyur: skyed. dang. khrin. nI: shos: gcad./ dngos: nI: 318 shos: myI: gcad: par: sho: tshIgs: gud. las: [gtug: par. ’ang.] thun. par. ’byung. bas: 319 ’dI: yang. shos: myI: gcad: par: mdzad. pa’I: rigs:/ / kha: mar. las: rta’i: lo’I: 320 sho: tshigs: [las: ’bya:] gyI: zhu: lan: [sa:] las: ’byung: ba’: bzhin. ’tshol: cIg:/ sho: tshIgs 321 ngos: chad. dang. gtIng. chad. lastsogs: pa: ser. la: thebs: pa: khram: nag: la: thebs: pa: dang:/ 322 dmag: myI: lo: bun. gyIs: bcad. pa: dang. mkhar. tsud. lo: chags: pe’i: rnams:/ shos: 323 gcado: zhes: byungste:/ chad. pa: nî: bka’: shos: khums: par: yang: bas:/ rje: blang: ngo: 324 blang: ’tshal: tam: myI: ’tshal/ / kha: mar: las: dmag: dang. mkhar: tsud. bcad. pa’i: 325 rnams: chad. pa: yang: shos: chod. dngos: gyang: gzhI: gzhi: la:: mchIs:/ dper: na. tshI: gu: 326 stag: nu:89 la: gtogs: pa: lta: bu: lo: rtsis: ma: bgyIs: pas: ser. la: nI: ma: bebs:90 327 sog: sa: che: chung. da.91 jag: rongdu. brtsis: pe’i: chad. byang: las: byung. ba’: ni: sho: tshIgs 328 las: sngan. cad. nyes: byungo. chog: shos: gcado: zhes: byung: bas: khrin. yang: bka: shos
89 ru? 90 thebs? 91 na? DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 67
329 chod: gzhI: gzhi: la: yang: mchIs: par. gnango./ [rta] sta ’I: lo’I: sho: tshigs: gyI: yal: ga’. 330 las: pho: brang. khor. gyI: zhal: ces: pas/ [phyi: blon. sar.] zhal: ce’i: pe’I: sa: nas: zhus: 331 las:/ phyI: blon: sar: dgyigste: mchId. gyis: bcad. pa:/ /bka’: sho’i: sngan. 332 roldu:/ rje: blas: skyar. btuste:/ gzhI: bus: brdzangs: pa: las: dmag: myI: rje blas 333 gcad. pa: dmag: chad. dngos: nI: khrin: myi: rma: bar. bka’: sho’i: tshigs: las: 334 gyang. ’byung. na./ dmagmag: rdzangs: lta: bo:/ dmag: god. thob: pas:92/ thus: 335 slad. ma’i: tshe: ’ang. [za:] rdzong. ’tshalte:/ [sla:] ’tshal: tam:/ slar. ’buldu. stsal:/ 336 kha: mar. las: ’di: lta: bsdu: be’i: rIgs: sam. myi: rIgs:/ phyi: blon. gyIs: 337 dgyigste: gsol: cig:/ myIg: mar. las: ’byung: ba’:/ :mun: dmag: btus 338 pe’i: rtsis: mgo: dang: bla’I: bka’: gsung: ba’: dag: dang [ga] sbyar. na./ mun. 339 mun: dmag. gzhan: kun. bsdu./ skyar btab. pegi: sgos: rdzong. ’dI: lta: bo: rdzang. 340 gzhan. la: dbab. par. nI: ltang: bur. bab. pas: da’: ltar./ stong: sde. so’i: ’og. 341 nang: srId. du: bgyis: nas: bcu: tshan: dang: khram: tshan. gyIs: rdzong. ba’: du. mchis 342 da’: dmag. chad: shos: khums: pe’i: dmag: rdzong. ded. pa: nI: spyi: mangdu. mchis 343 pa: yang. ’dra:/ dmag. chad. dngos: gyI: bka’: chad. nI: shos: khums: par. yang: 344 bas: na./ gzhI: pus: brdzangs: pe. ’i: rdzangs. lta: bo: khrims: gyIs: dmag: myis 345 dpangste:93/ thog: ma: gzhI: bo: las: ’gug: pe’i: tshe: yang: gtandu: stsal: pas. 346 dmag: myI: nor. lagste:/ bka’: sho: ma: byungdu: lags: gyIs: gyang. dmag. chad.
92 las? 93 Read dbangste. 68 BRANDON DOTSON
347 ’gum: ’am: spyugs: na./ bu. smad. kun. yang. khrIn. gyI: bka’: chad. la:/ 348 thug: pas:/ gzhI: bus: rdzangs: bdar. ma: mchIs: pa: lagste: ’dI: yang. rmyig94 349 dang. sbyar. na./ bu. londu. yang: myI: ’gyur: la:/ da’: ltar: gzhI: pus: bda’: 350 ba’:/ yongs: ’bangs: khrog: par: ’gyur. pas: rdzangs: gyI: rnams: gyang: 351 shos: gcad. par. mdzad. pe’i. rIgs:/ gong. du. gsol: ba: gzhIn. shos. gcad. 352 par: mdzad. na./ gzhI: po’i: mun: dmag: gyang: godu. ma: chud. pa: sa:95/ bu: bran.. btu. 353 pe’i: ’os:: mchIs: pa: mchIs: nI. dmag: myi: ’ang:96 bab:./ rdzongs: gyang: nyI: rimdu. 354 du: ’jalte: pham: yang. rab: na:/ bka’. chad. dang: ’dra: bar. gyur. pa: dmag: chad. 355 lta. bo: ’gum: spyugs: a: thug: pa: yang: khrin: chen: po: yang: bka’: shos/ 356 khums:/ rkya. ’ang: bka’: shos: dgum: zhIng: rkya: yuldu: ma: bsnan: pe’i:/ 357 rIgs: sam: myi: rIgs:/ / kha: mar. las: dmag: chad. rnams: rkya. god. 358 stsal: par. myI: gnang: gIs: dmag: nI: gzhi: la: snon. cîg: rdzangs: [gya:] ni: 359 bu: londu. gyur. pas: shos: ma: chod. gyis: gzhi: bo: slar. stsol: cig./
GLOSSARY
Due to the fact that IOL Tib J 740 has been transliterated by OTDO, and added to their KWIC concordance tool, it is unnecessary to present here a full concordance. Below, however, are some key terms, most of which appear in IOL Tib J 740. dkar-chag Manual, inventory.
94 [r]myig? 95 Read pas? 96 gang? DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 69 bka’-khrims Law (honorific). bka’-sho Dice edict. rkud Fine, penalty? rkya Crop fields. rkyen(d) Estate. skyin-pa Loan/ debt. bskyis-pa Loan/ debt. kha-(d)mar Red notched wooden slip. khram-tshan Tally group. khrin Legal punishment. khrims Law. dang khrims gcig/ chig Apply the law, try. gyur Interest, usually on an overdue loan. gyur ’ded-pa Lender; lit. ‘the one pursuing the interest’. dgum To carry out, execute. Past tense: khums. dgyigs To dispatch? sgor rabs-gcad Death penalty involving extermination of family line. dngos Himself, herself, itself. bcu-tshan Group of ten. chags-pa’i khungs-po Borrower. chad/ chad-ka Punishment. mchid mjal To agree. mchid kyis bcad To decide. mchis-brang Bride, wife. rje-blas Official duty. lta-bo Considering, concerning; similar to lta na; topicalizer. thang-yig Record. thugs-dpag Consideration. thong-myi khrims Law of homicide. bda’-ba To evade. ’dam-po Legal associate. gnang-chen Overseer/ manager of an estate. mnos-pa To entrust. pho-reng Hinterland? bag rgod To break off a marriage, separate? bu-lon chags-pa Lender; lit. ‘the one who made the loan’. bla-’og 1. Above and below, high and low. 2. Under the [jurisdiction of the] authority. 70 BRANDON DOTSON bla’og gi bu-lon A loan ‘under the authority;’ i.e., a govern- ment-protected loan. blo-yus Accuser, complainant. mig-(d)mar Red dotted wooden slip. mun-(d)mag Soldier. Conscript? myi-skyin Human loan/ human debt. myi-stong Blood money; amount of compensation for murder or injury. gtsang-dkar Juror; similar to gtsang-mi. gtsang-chen Rank just below that of ministerial aristo- cracy. rtsis-mgo Manual, code. rdzang/rdzong/brdzangs To provision. rdzangs Provisions. zhang-lon Minister, ministerial aristocracy. zhal-ce(s)-pa Judge. zhal-ce dbyangs To hold a trial; decide a legal case. gzhi-bu Estate holder. bzhag-btam Deposited security. yus-bdag Accuser, complainant. sho-tshigs Dice statutes. shos gcad To decide by means of dice.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abbreviations
CD2 SPANIEN, A. AND Y. IMAEDA. 1979. Choix de documents tibétains conservés à la Bibliothèque nationale: complété par quelques manuscrits de l’India Office et du British Museum. Tome 2. Paris: Bibliothèque nationale. CD3 IMAEDA, Y. AND T. TAKEUCHI. 1990. Choix de documents tibétains conservés à la Bibliothèque nationale: complété par quelques manuscrits de l’India Office et du British Museum: Corpus syllabique. Tome 3. Paris: Bibliothèque nationale. CD4 IMAEDA, Y. AND T. TAKEUCHI, et al. 2001. Choix de documents tibétains conservés à la Bibliothèque nationale: complété par quelques manuscrits de l’India Office et du British Museum: Corpus syllabique. Tome 4. Tokyo: Institut de Recherches sur les DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 71
Langues et Cultures d’Asie et d’Afrique (ILCAA), Université des Langues Étrangères de Tokyo. Jo-sras LDE’U JO-SRAS; Chos ’byung chen mo bstan pa’i rgyal mtshan, Chos-’dzoms (ed.). Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang, 1987. KhG DPA’-BO GTSUG-LAG PHRENG-BA; Dam pa’i chos kyi ’khor lo bsgyur ba rnams kyi byung ba gsal bar byed pa mkhas pa’i dga’ ston. Beijing: Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1985. Mkhas pahi dgah ston by Dpa -bo-gtsug-lag ’phreng-ba, Lokesh Chandra, (ed.), atapi aka Series no. 9 [4], New Delhi 1965. Lde’u MKHAS-PA LDE’U; Rgya bod kyi chos ’byung rgyas pa, Chab-spel tshe-brtan phun-tshogs (ed.). Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang, 1987. OTDO Old Tibetan Documents Online http://www.aa.tufs.ac.jp TLTD THOMAS, F.W. 1935, 1951, 1955, 1963. Tibetan Literary Texts and Documents Concerning Chinese Turkestan, Vols. I—IV. London: The Royal Asiatic Society.
Cited Old Tibetan Sources
PT 997 The inventory of Yu-lim Gtsug-lag-khang. PT 1101 An Old Tibetan tax record. PT 1060 A ritual text involving horses, and containing a catalogue of principalities. PT 1071 Laws regulating hunting accidents. PT 1072 Fragments of laws regulating hunting accidents. PT 1073 Laws concerning the dog bite. PT 1075 Laws concerning theft. PT 1083 Petition by Chinese residents of Sha-cu for racial endogamy. PT 1089 Petition regarding the order of rank in Sha-cu. PT 1286 The Royal Genealogy, properly a part of the Old Tibetan Chronicle. PT 1287 The Old Tibetan Chronicle. PT 1288 Part one of the Old Tibetan Annals, ‘civil version’. PT 1290 Fragmentary text containing the coronation of Khri Gtsug-lde-brtsan, catalogue of principalities and inform- ation about messengers. ITJ 750 Part two of the Old Tibetan Annals, ‘civil version’. ITJ 753 Laws concerning theft. ITJ 1141 Loan document. ITJ 1410 Document recording the boundaries of crop fields. Bsam-yas Pillar Dates to c. 779, records official conversion to Buddhism. 72 BRANDON DOTSON
Bsam-yas Edict This bka’-gtsigs dates to the same period and supplements the pillar inscription. Preserved in KhG. Skar-chung Pillar Dates to c. 812, renews commitment to Buddhism. Skar-chung Edict Dates to the same period and supplements the pillar inscription. Preserved in KhG, Lcang-bu Inscription Dates to reign of Khri Gtsug-lde-btsan (815-841), sets out charter for Lcang-bu Temple.
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MACDONALD, A. 1971. Une lecture des Pelliot tibétain 1286, 1287, 1038, et 1290: essai sur la formation et l’emploi des mythes politiques dans la religion royale de Sro bcan Sgam po. In A. MACDONALD (ed.), Études Tibétaines Dédiées à la Mémoire de Marcelle Lalou. Paris: Adrien Maisonneuve, 190-391. MACDONALD, A.W. 1980. Creative dismemberment among the Tamang and Sherpas of Nepal. In M. ARIS AND AUNG SAN SUU KYI (eds), Tibetan Studies in Honour of Hugh Richardson. Warminster: Aris and Phillips, 199-208. MILLER, R.A. 1966. Early evidence for vowel harmony in Tibetan. Language 42, 252-77. ———. 1981. Phonemic theory and orthographic practice in old Tibetan. Tibet Journal 1, 45-62. NEBESKY-WOJKOWITZ, R. DE. 1998 [1956]. Oracles and Demons of Tibet. The Cult and Iconography of Tibetan Protective Deities. Delhi: Classics India Publications. PELLIOT, P. 1961. Histoire Ancienne du Tibet. Paris: Adrien Maisonneuve. RAMBLE, C. 1993. Rule by play in southern Mustang. In C. RAMBLE AND M. BRAUEN (eds), Anthropology of Tibet and the Himalaya. Zürich: Völker-kundemuseum der Universität Zürich, 287-301. RICHARDSON, H. E. 1985. A Corpus of Early Tibetan Inscriptions. London: Royal Asiatic Society. ———. 1998 [1969]. Tibetan chis and tshis. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 25-27. ———. 1998 [1977]. Ministers of the Tibetan kingdom. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 56-73. ———. 1998 [1980]. The first Tibetan chos-’byung. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 89-99. ———. 1998 [1989]. Early Tibetan law concerning dog-bite. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 135-39. ———. 1998 [1990]. Hunting accidents in early Tibet. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 149-66. ———. 1998 [1992]. The inventory of Yu-lim Gtsug-lag-khang. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks, Pure Earth. London: Serindia, 279-85. RONG, X. 1990-91. Mthong-Khyab or Tongjia: a tribe in the Sino-Tibetan frontiers in the seventh to tenth centuries. Monumenta Serica 39, 247-99. SCHOPEN, G. 2004 [1994]. Doing business for the lord: lending on interest and written loan contracts in the M lasarv stiv da-vinaya. In G. SCHOPEN, Buddhist Monks and Business Matters: Still More Papers on Monastic Buddhism in India. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 45- 90. SEYFORT RUEGG, D. 2004. Introductory remarks on the spiritual and temporal orders. In C. CUPPERS (ed.), The Relationship Between Religion and State (chos srid zung ’brel) in Traditional Tibet. 76 BRANDON DOTSON
Proceedings of a Seminar Held in Lumbini, Nepal, March 2000. Lumbini: Lumbini International Research Institute, 9-13. SØRENSEN, P.K. AND G. HAZOD, in cooperation with T. GYALBO. 2005. Thundering Falcon: An Inquiry into the History and Cult of Khra-’brug Tibet’s First Buddhist Temple. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. STEIN, A. 1907. Ancient Khotan. Oxford: Clarendon Press. STEIN, R.A. 1961a. Les Tribus Anciennes des Marches Sino-Tibétaines; Légendes, Classifications et Histoire. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France. ———. 1961b. Une Chronique Ancienne de Bsam-Yas: Sba bzhed. Paris. ———. 1971-1972. Etude du monde Chinois: institutions et concepts. Annuaire du Collège de France 71éme Anneé, Résumé des Cours de 1971-1972, 431-50. ———. 1973. Un ensemble sémantique Tibétain: créer et procréer, etre et devenir, vivre, nourrir et guérir. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 36(2), 412-23. ———. 1984. l’Usage de métaphores pour des distinctions honorifiques à l’époque des rois Tibétains. Bulletin de l’École Française d’Extréme- Orient 73, 257-77. ———. 2003. On the word gcug-lag and the indigenous religion. In A. MCKAY (ed.), The History of Tibet. Volume One. London: Routledge Curzon, 530-83. TAKEUCHI, T. 1990. A group of Old Tibetan letters written under Kuei-I- Chün: a preliminary study for the classification of Old Tibetan letters. Acta Orientalia Scientiarum Hungaricae 44(1-2), 175-90. ———. 1994. Tshan: subordinate administrative units of the thousand- districts in the Tibetan empire. In P. KVÆRNE (ed.), Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the 6th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Fagernes 1992. Oslo: Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture, 848-62. ———. 1995. Old Tibetan Contracts from Central Asia. Tokyo: Daizo Shuppan. THOMAS, F.W. 1936. Law of theft in Chinese Kan-su: a IXth-Xth century fragment from Tun-huang. Stuttgart: Zeitschrift für vergleichende Rechtswissenschaft, 275-87. ———. 1957. Ancient Folk Literature from Northeastern Tibet. Berlin: Akademie Verlag. TUCCI, G. 1950. The Tombs of the Tibetan Kings. Serie Orientale Roma I. Roma: Is. M.E.O. ———. 1956. Preliminary Report on Two Scientific Expeditions in Nepal. Serie Orientale Roma X. Roma: Is. M.E.O. UEBACH, H. 1989. Notes on the section of law and state in the chos-’byung of Lde’u. In S. IHARA AND Z. YAMAGUCHI (eds), Tibetan Studies, DIVINATION AND LAW IN THE TIBETAN EMPIRE 77
Proceedings of the 5th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Narita 1989. Narita: Naritasan Shinshoji, 823-31. ———. 1991. Dbyar-mo-tha and Go -bu Ma-ru. Tibetan historiographical tradition on the treaty of 821/823. In E. STEINKELLNER (ed.), Tibetan History and Language: Studies Dedicated to Uray Géza on his Seventieth Birthday. Wien: Arbeitskreis für Tibetische und Buddhistische Studien, 497-526. ———. 1994. Small units in the territorial division of the Tibetan empire (7th - 9th century). In P. KVÆRNE (ed.), Tibetan Studies: Proceedings of the 6th Seminar of the International Association of Tibetan Studies Fagernes 1992. Oslo: Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture, 997-1003. ———. 1997. Eminent ladies of the Tibetan empire according to old Tibetan texts. In S.G. KARMAY AND P. SAGANT (eds), Les Habitants Du Toit Du Monde. Nanterre: Société d’Ethnologie, 53-74. ULVING, T. 1972. Tibetan vowel harmony reexamined. T’oung pao 58, 203- 17. URAY, G. 1961. Notes on a Tibetan military document from Tun-huang. Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 12, 223-30. ———. 1972. The narrative of legislation and organisation of the Mkhas pa’i dga’-ston: the origins of the traditions concerning Sro -brcan Sgam- po as the first legislator and organizer of Tibet. Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 26, 11-68. ———. 1982. Notes on the thousand-districts of the Tibetan empire in the first half of the ninth century. Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 36(1-3), 545-48. VINDING, M. 1998. The Thakali: A Himalayan Ethnography. London: Serindia Publications. WANGDU, P. AND H. DIEMBERGER. 2000. Dba’ Bzhed: The Royal Narrative Concerning the Bringing of the Buddha’s Doctrine to Tibet. Wien: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. ZHANG YISUN et al (eds). 1998 [1984]. Bod rgya tshigs mdzod chen mo. Beijing: mi rigs dpe skrun khang.
THE RELATIONS OF THE ELEVENTH-CENTURY TSONG KHA TRIBAL CONFEDERATION TO ITS NEIGHBOUR STATES ON THE SILK ROAD
Bianca Horlemann
The history of the relations of tenth- and eleventh-century Tibet with Central Asia remains poorly documented in contemporary scholar- ship. In the case of Central Tibet we mainly rely on very scattered information derived from Tibetan religious sources—in written and pictorial form—which mostly post-date the period with which we are concerned. Chinese sources on Central Tibet from this era apparently do not even exist. However, the prospects for research are slightly better with regard to the Tibetan or Tibetanized areas at the periphery, such as the tribal confederation of Tsong kha to the north- east of Central Tibet. Concerning its history, for example, we possess a fair amount of Chinese documentation pertaining to the eleventh and twelfth centuries, supplemented by later sources. In the case of the general history of eleventh-century Central Asia, there exist, apart from fragmentary Chinese literary sources, a variety of contemporary local materials. These include written and pictorial religious and non-religious documents on paper or silk, as well as coins, steles and stake inscriptions. However, these sources are not abundant and do not pertain evenly to all the different polities in Central Asia. Furthermore, they are difficult to study because of the great diversity of languages and cultures involved. With regard to the Silk Road states, most of the available sources originate from or concern the areas of Turfan/Gaochang ėā, Dunhuang ΑƧ/Sha- zhou νʸ and, to a lesser extent, Khotan. These had all been important realms at certain times, and archaeological research in these areas has been more intensive than in other regions. By
This chapter is based on a paper presented at the conference ‘Institutions religieuses, civiles et militaires du Tibet: Documents d’Asie Centrale, de Dunhuang et de Mustang’ at the Collège de France in Paris in May 2005. For technical reasons, only simplified Chinese characters have been used.
80 BIANCA HORLEMANN contrast, data on eleventh-century Kucha and post-1028 Ganzhou, for example, are extremely scarce. Rarely, if ever, do Central Asian sources refer to Tsong kha, so far as I know. Thus, even though it may be fragmentary and sometimes even misinformed or misleading, it seems worthwhile to study the Chinese material referring to our topic. The reason why Chinese historiography took an interest in Tsong kha is related to its strategic value for the Song Ͳ dynasty in the latter’s conflict with the Tangut Empire of Xixia ̃Ή. Thus, with regard to eleventh-century Tsong kha, the neighbours that figure most prominently are, of course, Song China and Xixia. Since these relations have already been studied in other publications, 1 this chapter will focus on the little known examples of interactions bet- ween Tsong kha and the former Silk Road states such as Gaochang, Khotan, Kucha, Ganzhou Ɋʸ and Liangzhou ᓋʸ. Suzhou Ȅʸ, Guazhou Ɉʸ and Shazhou νʸ will also be mentioned. How- ever, I would like to stress that since our knowledge of the history of these ethnically and culturally very diverse oasis states is still very limited, this chapter aspires to provide no more than a general overview.
INTRODUCTION TO TSONG KHA
Geographically, Tsong kha designates a region in northeast A mdo (in present-day northeast Qinghai Ʃ/ and southwest Gansu ɊƝ) that is traversed by the Tsong (chu) River,2 including its valley and tributaries.3 In the eleventh-century historical context, however, it indicated the area under the control of the Tsong kha confederation that extended east/west roughly from present-day Lan jo (Ch.
1 See, for example, ZHU 1988, DUNNELL 1994, IWASAKI 1974, 1975, 1986 and HORLEMANN 2004. The research is almost entirely based on Chinese sources. It seems, in fact, that very little information has been transmitted in either Tibetan or Tangut sources. I have been unable to confirm if Uighur or Khotanese sources exist on this topic. 2 Ch. Huangshui ċˈ. 3 Short geographical descriptions of the Tsong kha region are also included in Brag dgon Dkon mchog Bstan pa Rab rgyas, Mdo smad chos ’byung; see the chapters Mtsho sngon dpon khag gi lo rgyus ’ga’ bshad pa, p. 27, Tsong chu’i byang rgyud sogs bshad pa, passim, and Tsong chu’i lho dang rma chu’i byang rgyud bshad pa, passim. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 81
Lanzhou ∓ʸ) over Zi ling (Ch. Xining ̃̆) to Stong skor4 and north/south from Gser khog5 to Min ju.6 (See figure 1: Tsong kha and Adjoining Areas.) At the end of the tenth and the beginning of the eleventh century C.E. several tribes east of Lake Qinghai (Mtsho sngon po) formed a confederation that, during the eleventh century, was ruled by Jiaosiluo ᧮⋕ and his offspring. Tsong kha’s polit- ical centre was located in Qingtang Ʃͮ near today’s capital of Qinghai Province, Xining. The confederation played a vital econ- omic, political and military role in relation to its neighbours Song China, the Tangut Xixia Empire and the oasis states of the Gansu Corridor. (See figure 2: Tsong kha and its Neighbours.) Tsong kha not only controlled the southern trading routes between Central Asia and the Song Empire, but it was also an important breeding area for horses that were much sought after by the Chinese military. Furthermore, sharing borders with the rival empires of China and Xixia and with the small oasis state of Liangzhou lent Tsong kha special military and strategic significance and made it an attractive potential ally. Even the more distant Liao ѭ Empire entertained relations with Tsong kha.7 Surprisingly, information on the ties between Central Tibet and Tsong kha, which presumably were quite close, hardly exists.8
4 Ch. Huangyuan ċļ. 5 Ch. Datong ̓Ở. Gser khog is missing on the map. It is located ca. 30 km north of Zi ling/Xining by air. 6 Also Men ju, Ch. Minzhou ˫*. 7 See HORLEMANN 2004: 46. 8 Later Tibetan sources, from the fourteenth century onwards, mention a connection between the rulers of Tsong kha and the royal lineage of ’Od srung, one of the sons of Glang Dar ma. This connection appears, however, rather questionable (HORLEMANN 2005). We also know that Tsong kha played a vital role in the revival of Buddhism in Central Tibet during the tenth century when Dgongs pa rab gsal (c. ninth-tenth centuries) and his disciples were teaching the Dharma in this area. Apart from this, information on the tenth- and eleventh-century Tsong kha region in Tibetan sources is scarce. There is a short reference to Tsong kha in the early fourteenth-century Tibetan hagiographical work, Jo bo rje dpal ldan a ti sha’i rnam thar bka’ gdams pha chos (attributed to ’Brom ston gzhon nu blo gros; see MARTIN 1997: 48-49, no. 69), which mentions the wealth of the king of Tsong kha during AtiWa’s lifetime (’BROM STON 1993: 193). Perhaps there exist similar references in other Tibetan sources. 82 BIANCA HORLEMANN
Figure 1: Tsong kha and Adjoining Areas (B. Horlemann/A. Gruschke) THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 83
By the end of the eleventh century, the Tsong kha confederation was gradually disintegrating as the constituent tribes started to form independent alliances with either the Chinese or the Tanguts. With the confederation thus weakened, the tribes were subsequently conquered and absorbed by their former allies.
Figure 2: Tsong kha and its Neighbours
84 BIANCA HORLEMANN
TSONG KHA AND THE SILK ROAD STATES
This overview will proceed from Liangzhou at the eastern end of the so-called Gansu Corridor westward to Khotan. Regarding the general nature of contacts between Tsong kha and the Silk Road states, our information is mainly restricted to military affairs, marriage alliances and trade or tribute relations.
1. Liangzhou ᓋʸ (Modern Wuwei ģȆ)9
Liangzhou is situated at the eastern end of the Gansu Corridor and on the spur of the Qilian ũѶ mountains, just north of Tsong kha. It has a long history as a major trading post on the Silk Road and as an important Buddhist centre that dates back to at least the fourth century C.E. Since the mid-tenth century Liangzhou had been ruled by a confederation of different tribes; first under the leadership of the Zhebu Ρ3 chieftains and later under the leadership of the Zhelong ųࢥ chieftains. These tribes seem to have been ethnically diverse and probably consisted of Uighurs/Huihe ʛÞ/Huigu ʛࡒ, Qiang ű , Wenmo Ȼ /Hunmo ◈Ȼ10 and Tibetans. Furthermore, Liangzhou also had Chinese inhabitants.11
9 Formerly also called Xiliangfu ᡃεè. 10 According to the Xin Tangshu the Chinese term Wenmo (also: Wumo, variant: Hunmo) designates groups of people who had been enslaved by the Tibetans in the seventh to ninth centuries and who worked the fields and tended the animals in the newly conquered areas of the Tibetan Empire; Xin Tangshu 216b: 6.108. THOMAS (1946: 516) reconstructed Wenmo as Tibetan *(d)mun (d)mag, a reconstruction that RICHARDSON (1998 [1990]: 173) also adopted, whereas URAY (1988: 517, n. 6) suggested *’od ’bar without further explication; it seems that Uray refers to HAMILTON 1955, but I could not find ’od ’bar in HAMILTON, although he has a rather detailed note on the Wenmo on pp. 30-31 as well as on pp. 129-30. According to Brandon Dotson, whose understanding is based on several different Dunhuang texts, mun dmag simply designates ‘soldiers’, possibly ‘conscripted soldiers’, since estate holders were obliged to provide a certain number of their bondservants as soldiers for the Tibetan army; see DOTSON, in this volume. Thus we might consider ‘Wenmo’ as a collective term for former serfs of estate holders within the Tibetan Empire who were drafted as soldiers and who, after a military campaign was terminated, served again as farm hands on the newly established estates in the conquered areas. Their ethnic background remains unclear, but most likely the Wenmo were ethnically diverse depending on where and how they became serfs in the first place. However, the Chinese character ‘hun ϥ’ in Hunmo, which is the same as in ‘Tuyuhun Ȕϥ’, one of the Chinese terms for the ’A zha people, might indicate a connection between these two. This supposition is further supported by the fact that after the collapse of the Tibetan Empire the Wenmo are found all THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 85
At the beginning of the eleventh century some tribes that later belonged to the Tsong kha confederation were close allies of Liangzhou in its fight against the Tanguts, which started around 1003. Chinese sources specifically mention tribes from Kangu ࢧ, Lanzhou and Zongge ¢Ͳ.12 When Liangzhou, which was further unsuccessfully attacked by the Tanguts in 1008 and 1015, finally fell around 1032, a large part of Liangzhou’s population seems to have fled to the Tsong kha region. The sources speak of about 100,000 people, but this number is most probably inflated.13
2. Ganzhou Ɋʸ (Modern Zhangye ␔ƽ)
Ganzhou had been dominated by the Uighurs at least since the early tenth century.14 In the second half of the tenth century, Ganzhou’s sphere of influence included not only the oasis of Ganzhou itself, but most likely also the areas of Suzhou Ȅʸ (near modern Jiuquan Ă ɸ), Guazhou Ɉʸ (near modern Anxi ʴ̃) and probably even Shazhou νʸ.15 The relationship of Ganzhou to the Uighur Empire of Xizhou ̃ʸ remains obscure; it seems possible that Ganzhou had been Xizhou’s vassal. Nevertheless, Ganzhou acted fairly
over Gansu in former strongholds of the Tuyuhun, where they appear to have formed new socio-political entities that became quite influential, with Liangzhou being one such example. 11 For a more detailed account on the history of Liangzhou, see, for instance, IWASAKI 1974 and 1986, as well as the early nineteenth century work by Zhang Shu, the Liangzhou fuzhi beikao. 12 Zongge and the other tribes helped to pursue and punish six former Zhelong tribes that had changed sides from Liangzhou to the Tanguts. See Songshi (compiled in the early fourteenth century) 40: 14.157. 13 See the eleventh-century work Longpingji 20: 10r. 14 For a more detailed account of Ganzhou’s history see PINKS 1968 and HAMILTON 1955. 15 Ganzhou and Shazhou had struggled for supremacy over the western Gansu Corridor since the early tenth century. In 977, the Ganzhou ruler styled himself Gan-, Shazhou Huigu Kehan Waisheng Ϝ̭*ú،dz˫, the ‘Uighur Khan of Gan- and Shazhou, the nephew/son-in-law (of the Chinese emperor)’, when sending tribute missions to the Chinese. See Songshi 40: 14.114. Regarding the still unresolved question of the relationship between Ganzhou, Suzhou and Guazhou during the late tenth and early eleventh centuries, see PINKS 1968: 73-79. 86 BIANCA HORLEMANN independently, and, for example, sent its own tribute missions to China on a regular basis.16 Ganzhou started to come into conflict with the emerging Tangut Xixia Empire at the end of the tenth or the beginning of the eleventh century. Furthermore, the Liao Empire also encroached on Gan- zhou’s territory north of Suzhou/modern Jiuquan. At the beginning of the eleventh century, Ganzhou offered a military alliance to Song China against the Tanguts, but the Chinese court was hesitant because of its ongoing conflict with the Khitan Liao Empire. Thus the Ganzhou Uighurs depended on their immediate neighbours, Liangzhou and the newly-established Tsong kha confederation, for help. Tsong kha was not only already an ally of Liangzhou in its fight against the Tanguts, but it also offered alternative trading routes to China bypassing the Tanguts south of the Qilian mountains. Therefore, the Ganzhou qaghan was interested in improving his ties with Tsong kha and so offered a marriage alliance in about 1012/1013. However, the Tsong kha ruler Jiaosiluo refused to pay the bridal price for the Uighur princess and the planned marriage did not take place. Thereafter, Tsong kha also blocked the trading routes for Ganzhou, which caused the qaghan to implore the Song court in 1015 to urge Tsong kha to reopen the routes.17 One Chinese source claims that between 1016 and 1018 the succeeding Ganzhou ruler renewed the offer of a marriage alliance and that thereafter a Uighur princess was married to one of Jiaosiluo’s three sons.18 However, we lack more specific inform- ation about this and the source might have confused this marriage with that of either Jiaosiluo’s son or grandson to a Kuchean princess, which probably occurred around 1060. (See figure 3: Rulers of Tsong kha and Marriage Alliances.) Nonetheless, Ganzhou resumed its tribute missions to the Chinese court around 1018 and continued to do so until circa 1028.19 Starting in 1026/27, the Khitan and the Tanguts staged frequent assaults on the greater Ganzhou region. Liao put pressure on the western area and the Tanguts attacked from the east. In Chinese
16 See Songshi 40: 14.114-14.116. Regarding the poorly documented relationship between the Uighur realms of Ganzhou and Xizhou during the tenth and eleventh centuries and the status of Shazhou, see, for example, HUA 2000: 24-26. 17 See the twelfth-century Xu zizhi tongjian changbian 85: 753 and the eighteenth-century Ganzhou fuzhi 1: 179-80. 18 See Ganzhou fuzhi 1: 180. 19 Ganzhou sent its missions approximately once a year. See Ganzhou fuzhi 1: 180-81. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 87 sources, news of the Ganzhou Uighurs stops around 1028, but it might have been a few more years before the Tanguts successfully conquered Ganzhou, since only in 1035 did a great number of Ganzhou Uighurs (approximately 10,000) flee to the Tsong kha territory. Furthermore, only in 1035 did the Tanguts officially incorporate the Ganzhou area into their realm as ‘Zhenyijun’ ֭ʦ ∞.20 The sources do not mention where in Tsong kha the Ganzhou Uighurs settled, but it seems likely that they took refuge in the area south of the Qilian mountains and north of lake Qinghai. This is the area where we find the so-called ‘Yellow Head Uighurs/Huangtou Huihe ᜲᅾʛÞ’ starting from the second half of the eleventh century, as well as the ‘Dada ٌ:/Tartars’.21 When the Chinese court considered enlisting the military help of the Dada and the Uighurs against the Tanguts in the 1080s, they probably referred to these Yellow Head Uighurs and the Caotou Dada Ãᅾٌ:.22 An ethnic group called Sarig Yugur, ‘Yellow Uighurs’, still exists to this day.23 According to Chinese sources, Uighur tribute missions also occurred in the years 1068, 1073 and 1074; thereafter, the Uighurs rarely sent tribute.24 However, from these sources it is not clear whether these Uighur tribute missions came from the Yellow Head Uighurs or from the Uighurs of the realm of Xizhou.25
20 See Longpingji 20: 10r, Songshi 40: 14.161 and Ganzhou fuzhi 1: 183. 21 The latter are said to have sent tribute missions to the Chinese court together with the Ganzhou Uighurs as early as 996, and then again with Tsong kha and the Uighurs starting from about the second half of the eleventh century. See YANG 2003: 34 and Xu zizhi tongjian changbian 341: 3.171. The Historical Atlas of China by Tan Qixiang, vol. 6: 40-41, shows a people called ‘Caotou Dada’ ል͐♕♀ as direct neighbours of the Yellow Head Uighurs. Regarding the tenth-century Dada, see also ZHANG 2003: 43. 22 See Xu zizhi tongjian changbian 346: 3.206. 23 On the Sarig Yugur, see HOPPE 1998: 56, 151, n. 2 and CLARK 1996: 38-39. 24 See Songshi 40: 14.117. 25 Regarding the Xizhou Uighurs, see the paragraphs on Gaochang and Kucha below. 88 BIANCA HORLEMANN
THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 89
3. Suzhou Ȅʸ (Near Modern Jiuquan Ăɸ) and Guazhou Ɉʸ (Near Modern Anxi ʴ̃)
Neither Suzhou nor Guazhou is specifically mentioned in connection with Tsong kha, and this can be interpreted as further evidence that the two were not independent oasis states but probably belonged to the realm of the Ganzhou Uighurs as already mentioned above.26 Suzhou came under attack from the Khitan in about 1008 and later also from the Tanguts.27 We still do not know when and by whom it was finally conquered. According to the Historical Atlas of China, the Suzhou area had become part of the Tangut Empire by 1038.28 Guazhou came under attack by either the Khitan or Tanguts at about the same time as Suzhou and probably also fell in the 1030s. However, different Chinese sources offer different dates: we find 1030, 1036 and 1037.29
4. Shazhou νʸ/Dunhuang ΑƧ
According to Chinese sources, the Shazhou rulers had sent ‘tribute’ to the Chinese court and received ‘gifts’ and ‘titles’ in return since the beginning of the Song Dynasty in the mid-tenth century. Tribute missions from Shazhou are mentioned up to the mid-eleventh century. 30 Although Shazhou is not specifically mentioned in connection with Tsong kha, this, again, might be an indication that at the beginning of the eleventh century Shazhou was not an independ- ent oasis state, but was part of the realm of the Ganzhou Uighurs, or was at least closely affiliated with them.31 For instance, in 1014 the Shazhou ruler styled himself the Shazhou Huigu Dunhuang junzi ν ʸʛࡒΑƧ́ů, or the ‘lord of Dunhuang of the Shazhou Uigh- urs’.32 Another source speaks of the Gan-, Shazhou Huigu kehan waisheng Ɋνʸʛࡒȉ˘Ȟ, the ‘Uighur Khan of Gan- and
26 Refer to n. 15 above. 27 See Ganzhou fuzhi 1: 179 and the early twentieth century Gansu xin tongzhi 46: 6. 28 See Tan Qixiang, vol. 6: 36-37. 29 See IWASAKI 1986: 103 and Gansu xin tongzhi 46: 7. 30 According to URAY (1988: 516), the last tribute mission is mentioned in 1052. However, I was not able to verify his source. On the different tribute missions see also YANG 2003: 34. 31 See n. 15 above. 32 See Gansu xin tongzhi 46: 6. 90 BIANCA HORLEMANN
Shazhou, the son-in-law/nephew (of the Chinese emperor)’.33 The context implies that this is the title of only one person and not of two khans. However, in 1030 the Shazhou ruler styled himself Shazhou Zhenguo wangzi νʸ֭ዪǞů, the ‘king’ or ‘prince’ of Shazhou who protects the country’.34 What might have caused the Shazhou ruler to change his title in 1030? Possible explanations could be:
a. It is usually assumed that Shazhou was conquered by the Tanguts in the 1030s.35 Thus the change of title might have occurred in connection with the new Xixia overlordship. b. Shazhou might have become fully independent after the fall of Ganzhou and before it was conquered by the Tanguts. c. It might have fallen under the influence of the encroaching Liao Empire. d. It might have become associated with the Xizhou Uighurs. e. Or Shazhou might have come under the influence of the Yellow Head Uighurs.36
It seems most probable, in fact, that Shazhou was associated with the Xizhou Uighurs after Ganzhou had been seriously threatened by the Tanguts.37 We know, for instance, that Shazhou allied itself with Kucha in 1037 to send tribute to the Song court. Although the Shazhou area (including Guazhou and Suzhou) was repeatedly attacked by the Tanguts starting from 1030, Shazhou still sent seven tribute missions to the Song between 1034 and 1049.38 The final conquest of Dunhuang itself apparently did not occur before 1052/53.39 In fact, only in the 1070s do we find definite evidence of Tangut presence in Shazhou.40 Thus, assuming that Shazhou was never really independent during the eleventh century, having been first dominated by Ganzhou, then by Xizhou and later by the Tanguts, it is not surprising that we find no evidence of any military or marriage alliances between Tsong kha
33 See Songshi 40: 14.114. 34 See URAY 1988: 516. 35 See, for example, HAMILTON 1996: 136 and DUNNELL 1994: 179. 36 For the Yellow Head Uighurs see the Ganzhou chapter above. 37 See KY ANOV 2004: 155 who, however, refers to Moriyasu in this matter. 38 See Songshi 40: 14.123. 39 See URAY 1988: 516. 40 See DUNNELL 1994: 179 and 1996: 36. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 91 and Shazhou. However, it appears probable that the two nevertheless at least entertained trade relations.
5. Gaochang ėā/Qocho/Jiaohe ɤĮ/Xizhou ̃ʸ (Near Modern Turfan/Tulufan ʏޔ)
The area of Gaochang came under Uighur domination in the mid- ninth century and was apparently the centre of Uighur power in the Tianshan ƲŶ area during the tenth and eleventh centuries. However, it remains uncertain how far Gaochang’s sphere of influence actually extended at given times.41 Unfortunately, Chinese sources are somewhat confused when they refer to the different Uighur realms. The Songshi, for example, has different sections on Gaochang, the Uighurs in general and on Kucha, with the Gan- and Shazhou Uighurs mentioned in the general Uighur section. Furthermore it often refers to the so-called ‘Xizhou Uighurs’, who are supposed to be equivalent to the Kucha Uighurs,42 although ‘Xizhou’ was one of the old names for Gaochang during the Tang Dynasty and is thus usually associated with this area.43 To make things even more complicated, during the Song Dynasty the name ‘Xizhou’ apparently also referred to the area of Yanqi ȳ/Kara- shahr, near today’s Korla/Ku’erle ␆ᆂĴ, which is roughly midway between Kucha and Gaochang.44 It is usually assumed that the formerly independent realms of Gaochang and Kucha had been united sometime during the tenth century and remained so until the eleventh century.45 However, we might also consider the possibility
41 In 1001 the Uighurs claimed that their realm extended from the snow mountains in the west, i.e., the Tianshan, to the Yellow River in the east; see Songshi 40: 14.115. A similar claim is made in a Uighur stake inscription found in Qocho that obviously also refers to the early eleventh century (HAMILTON 2004: 122). Furthermore, we find also the expression Gaochang zhu guo, ‘all the coun- tries/principalities of Gaochang’ in Songshi 40: 14.161, which seems to imply that the realm of Gaochang consisted of several subordinate principalities. See also TIAN 2003: 13. 42 See Songshi 40: 14.123. 43 However, the Chinese military unit that was also called by the name of ‘Xizhou’ not only moved its seat to Kucha, but also repeatedly changed its name during the seventh and eighth centuries. 44 See Qinding huangyu xiyu tuzhi 3: 16v, 5:7. Thus, the centre of Uighur power might have shifted at different times and it appears possible that at some point Yanqi was in fact the capital of the united Uighur realm and not Kucha or Turfan/Gaochang proper, but this needs to be examined further. 45 Our knowledge of the history of the relations between Gaochang and Kucha from the eighth to the twelfth/thirteenth century is still very limited, as is apparent 92 BIANCA HORLEMANN that Gaochang and Kucha remained separate, though closely assoc- iated political units until Kucha became part of the realm of the Muslim Qarakhanids sometime during the latter part of the eleventh century.46 According to the 18th century geographical work Qinding huangyu xiyu tuzhi, general references to ‘Gaochang’ in Song Chinese sources might also refer to the former capital or summer residence of Beiting ǿ/Beshbaliq, about 150 km north of modern Turfan, and not necessarily to the area of Gaochang proper.47 A unique, but important reference to Tsong kha in this connection concerns its first ruler Jiaosiluo, who, according to some Chinese sources, was supposed to have come from a place named ‘Gaochang Moyuguo’ ėňɛžዪ.48 I have not been able to identify Moyuguo ɛžዪ, but I presume that it does not designate a guo ዪ, namely a ‘Kingdom or Principality of Moyu’, but that Moyuguo was the Chinese rendering of a Uighur place name in the realm of Gaochang.49 Thus, ‘Moyuguo’ might, for example, represent the Turkish ‘Murtuq’, a village not far from where the famous Buddhist grottoes of Bezeklik are situated.50 If we presume that Jiaosiluo’s place of origin was in fact in the Turfan area, this would mean that Jiaosiluo was born in a locality under Uighur rule.51 However, we do not automatically have to consider him a Uighur, since Gaochang, like Tsong kha, had a multi-ethnic population.52 Although it appears
from more recent publications. See, for example, TIAN 2003, PETECH 1992, UMEMURA 1996: 365 and TROMBERT 2000. 46 On Kucha, see paragraph 6 below. 47 See the map and notes in Qinding huangyu xiyu tuzhi 3: 10-11. 48 See, for example, Songshi 40: 14.160 and Longpingji 20: 9v. 49 According to Chinese custom, the name of the bigger territorial unit precedes the smaller unit, e.g. Zhongguo Beijing. Therefore, with regard to Gaochang Moyuguo, Gaochang should refer to the kingdom or principality whereas Moyuguo designates the smaller locality, e.g. a village or oasis. 50 Another location called Moyu ˄ɍ, albeit with different Chinese characters, is found near Khotan where a great hoard of mainly Song coins, but also including a few Qarakhanid coins, has been unearthed in 1992. See BIRAN 2001: 80. However, this Moyu is most probably not related to Gaochang Moyuguo. 51 The Turkologist MALJAVKIN (1983: 80) explicitly maintains that Jiaosiluo was born in Turfan. 52 The population of Tsong kha probably consisted of remnants of the formerly dominant ’A zha people (Ch. Tuyuhun Ȕϥ) and of the Qiang ๐, Central Tibetans who had remained after the disintegration of the Tibetan Empire in the ninth century, Tanguts (who were actually multi-ethnic as well), Uighurs, other Turkish people like the Shatuo ̭┄, and last but not least, Chinese who stayed in and around former Chinese military garrisons established during the Tang Dynasty. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 93 that the majority of the population was either Uighur or Chinese, there is evidence of friendly Tibetan-Uighur relations in Gaochang during the tenth century when Jiaosiluo was born. Furthermore, Gaochang might still have had a small community of Tibetans remaining from the time of the Tibetan domination during the eighth and ninth centuries, or a community of Tibetan merchants.53 However, since the origin of Jiaosiluo still remains obscure, we also have to consider the possibility that the above-mentioned Chinese sources that refer to Gaochang Moyuguo are misleading or mistaken.54
6. Kucha/Guici ࢩᒛ (Quci ©ᒛ/Qiuci ǣᒛ)/Anxi ʴ̃/Modern Kuche ␆а
The Uighurs dominated the Kucha area at least since the late ninth century. The area of Kucha proper is called Guici (variants: Qiuzi, Jiuci), or Anxi in Chinese. However, when the Song Chinese referred to the greater realm of Kucha, they also called it ‘Xizhou Huigu ̃ ʸʛࡒ’, ‘Xizhou Guici ̃ʸࢩᒛ’, and ‘Guici Huigu ࢩᒛʛࡒ’.55 Thus, the ruler who was usually designated as the ‘Xizhou Huigu kehan/Khan of the Xizhou Uighurs’ by the Chinese might have been the khan of Gaochang proper (the former Xizhou), Kucha proper, or of a united Uighur realm of Gaochang and Kucha, with the latter alternative being the most likely.56 In 981, for example, the Uighur ruler was styled Xizhou waisheng shizi wang Asilan han ̃ʸȞɋ ᇓůǞƣ᧮∓▩.57 The waisheng Ȟɋ, or ‘foreign born’ in the
Some evidence seems to suggest that the majority of the Tsong kha population led a nomadic or semi-nomadic life and was organized in tribes according to Central Asian patterns. They coexisted with a small settled population of farmers, traders and monks living in and around fortified villages that also served as ‘residences’ for the tribal chieftains. For a more detailed study of Tsong kha’s population see HORLEMANN 2004: 174-88. 53 See VON GABAIN 1973: 27-28. 54 One Chinese source provides ‘Wusanmie ǺYʭ’ as the place of origin of Jiaosiluo. This, however, could be the Chinese rendering for Dbus Bsam yas, a famous place in Central Tibet. For more information, see HORLEMANN 2005. 55 See Songshi 40: 14.123. 56 See the paragraph on Gaochang above. The history of the relations between Kucha and Gaochang from the eighth to the twelfth or thirteenth century still remains obscure, as may be seen in recent publications; refer, for example, to LIU 2004: 180-82, GENG 2004: 95-96, TIAN 2003, TROMBERT 2000, and PETECH 1992: 10-11. Concerning the title of the ruler, see Songshi 40: 14.123. 57 See Songshi 40: 14.110. For possible identifications with Uighur rulers according to Uighur sources see, for example, UMEMURA 1996. 94 BIANCA HORLEMANN
Songshi is probably mistaken for waisheng Ȟ, meaning ‘nephew, son-in-law’, which refers sometimes to a real but often also to a fictitious family relation between a non-Chinese ruler and the Chinese emperor, and expresses the subordinate status of the foreign king with regard to China. Shizi ᇓů is to be considered as a misprint for shizi ♔ů, ‘lion’, a duplication of Asilan (han), i.e. Arslan (khan), the ‘lion (khan)’, apparently a frequently recurring name among Gaochang rulers.58 Furthermore, in 1018 we hear of a Guici guo kehan wang Zhihai ࢩᒛዪȉ˘ǞΝ/, ‘Zhihai, the khan and king of the realm of Kucha’, who seems, however, to be identical with the Gaochang ruler.59 Thus it seems that Kucha and Gaochang—at least at certain times—were governed by one and the same individual, who is sometimes referred to as the ruler of Xizhou and sometimes as the ruler of Kucha. Apparently Kucha sent tribute missions to the Song court on a rather irregular basis starting from 962 onwards. The Songshi mentions missions in 962, 965, between 968 and 976, 98160 and 1013, as well as between 1023 and 1038.61 After a gap of more than three decades, three more tribute missions from the Kucha Uighurs are documented for 1071, 1072 and 1096. Tribute goods in this last mission also included one or more Buddha statues made of jade.62 The absence of missions between 1038 and 1071 might have been due to the unstable situation in East Turkestan caused by the advance of the Tanguts to the east and the Muslim Qarakhanids to the west. It still remains uncertain when exactly the Kucha area was conquered by the Qarakhanids and how tightly it came under Muslim rule. According to Arabic sources, it appears as if Kucha was already under Qarakhanid rule by the mid-eleventh century.63 If this holds true, then the Muslim ruler must have been exceptionally tolerant with regard to symbols of non-Islamic religions such as the jade Buddhas presented to the Chinese in 1096 as mentioned above.
58 For other Uighur rulers called ‘Arslan’ among their multiple names and titles see, for example, SUNDERMANN 1992: 66 and UMEMURA 1996: 365-68. 59 See Songshi 40: 14.117 and TIAN 2003. For possible identifications with Uighur rulers according to Uighur sources see also UMEMURA 1996. 60 In 981 the Chinese sent a mission to the Xizhou Uighurs that probably returned in 984, and which gave a rather detailed report to the Chinese emperor. See Songshi 40: 14.113-14.114. 61 See Songshi 40: 14.113-14.123 passim. 62 See Songshi 40: 14.123. 63 See LIU 2004: 181, GENG 2004: 96, KOTCHNEV 2001: 42 and BIRAN 2001: 80. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 95
With regard to Tsong kha, we learn that around 1060 to 1062 a ruler from the ‘western region’ (xijie ̃ʪ) named Mangmi ʾö sent a mission to Tsong kha and offered presents and a marriage alliance.64 It is not clear whether this ruler Mangmi was from Kucha, but we know that around 1060 either Jiaosiluo’s son Dongzhan Ƞᐶ or Dongzhan’s son Qiding Mobiao Su’nan μŅɛ ʩȄǔ did indeed marry a Kuchean princess. Her Chinese name reads Qingyi Jiemou Ʃ¥Čˣ, or Qingying Jiemou ƩƖČˣ, where ‘Jiemou Čˣ’ is probably a phonetic rendering of the Tibetan rgyal mo, ‘queen’. 65 (See figure 3: Rulers of Tsong kha and Marriage Alliances.) Later on, this Kuchean princess probably became the wife of the new Tsong kha ruler, Aligu ƣ*Ė, the successor and adoptive son of Dongzhan.66 The Kuchean princess is last mention-ed in 1099/1100, when, together with the Khitan and Tangut princesses, all surrendered to the Chinese army that attacked the Tsong kha residential seat in Qingtang.67 Kuchean tribute or trade missions also seem to have continued until the end of the eleventh century, since the Songshi mentions a mission in 1096 that travelled as far as Taoxi ʌ̃, the area west of the Tao River in Tsong kha, although this territory was by then partly under Chinese rule.68 If Kucha was indeed under Qarakhanid rule by the mid- eleventh century, this would mean that Tsong kha also entertained relations with a newly converted Muslim area.
Khotan/Yutian Ţؚ/Near Modern Hetian yɎ .7
The realm of Khotan is generally considered to have been conquered by the Muslim Qarakhanids in about 1006,69 although some scholars assume that the influence of the Qarakhanids did not become apparent before the mid- or even late eleventh century.70 For in-
64 See the eleventh-century work Lequanji 22: 24r. 65 See Lequanji 22: 24r. 66 Aligu apparently exercised the levirate, taking the wife or wives of close deceased male relatives as his own wives. It seems that the former Khitan wife of Dongzhan as well as the former Tangut wife of Dongzhan’s son also became Aligu’s wives. See HORLEMANN 2004: 87. 67 See Song huiyao jigao (compiled in early 19th century) 33b: 10-34a: 2. 68 See Songshi 40: 14.123. 69 See, for example, KOTCHNEV 2001 passim, ZHAO 2001: 104 and PETECH 1992: 10. 70 See, for example, REN 1997: 30. Also Biran has pointed out that most of the sources referring to the incorporation of Khotan into the Qarakhanid realm and into 96 BIANCA HORLEMANN stance, in 1038 the Tanguts still claimed that Khotan had become their vassal state,71 which seems to imply that Khotan was not yet dominated by the Qarakhanids. In 1063, however, a Chinese source explains that the self-designation of the Khotan ruler Hei han õٛ stands for qara (= hei õ, black) and khan, which apparently points to the domination by the Qarakhanids at least by that time.72 Khotan maintained tribute relations with Song China starting from the mid-tenth century and often sent monks on these missions. It seems that Khotan also joined with Kucha from time to time to send tribute missions to China, and that they used to travel along the Gansu Corridor passing Guazhou and Shazhou before this route was blocked by the Tanguts. According to the Songshi, the missions stopped altogether between 1025 and 1063.73 Three missions sent between 1068 and 1081 did not return to Khotan for reasons unknown.74 Perhaps these missions had been intercepted by the Tanguts. Starting from 1081 onwards, Khotan sent its tribute missions to China via Tsong kha, which provided guides to the Khotanese as well as living quarters for the Khotanese merchants in the Tsong kha capital Qingtang.75 However, these activities prob- ably came to a halt in 1099 when the Chinese started to attack Qingtang. In 1093 the Khotanese are supposed to have asked the Song court for assistance against the Tanguts, but in vain. In 1097, Khotan reported to the Chinese that the Khotanese themselves had attacked the Tanguts in Shazhou, Suzhou and Ganzhou.76 If Khotan was in
Muslim religious life apparently pertain to the late twelfth, or early thirteenth cent- ury (private communication). Thus eleventh-century Khotan might have had some kind of vassal status with regard to the Qarakhanids instead of having already been fully incorporated into their realm. However, the conquest and incorporation of Kashgar, approximately 400 km northwest of Khotan, by the Qarakhanids in the second half of the tenth century is undisputed. 71 See DUNNELL 1994: 179. 72 Although the Khotan ruler is already mentioned as heihan in 1009, it seems to me that this title only slipped into the fourteenth century work Songshi in retrospect; see Songshi 40: 14.107. Concerning doubts that the Chinese heihan is a proper rendering of the Turkish qara khan, see JIANG 2001. 73 See Songshi 40: 14.108. 74 See Songshi 40: 14.109. 75 See Songshi 40: 14.109 and the late eleventh/ early twelfth century work Qingtanglu in Shuofu 35: 12r. 76 See Songshi 40: 14.109. Tangut attacks on Khotan, unfortunately without dates, are also confirmed by the Qingtanglu in Shuofu 35: 12r, which even refers to a complete conquest of Khotan by the Tanguts. This event is supposed to have caused 100 merchant families from Khotan to flee to Tsong kha. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 97 fact already firmly under Qarakhanid rule, as is generally assumed,77 and if the aforementioned Chinese sources are not mistaken, this would mean that already by the end of the eleventh century the Muslims had ventured as far east as the Gansu corridor. This might also shed new light on the question of why and when the so-called Dunhuang documents were hidden in a sealed cave at the Mogao Grottoes near Dunhuang/Shazhou.78 Apparently, the relations between Tsong kha and Khotan intensified after the Tsong kha ruler Dongzhan (1032-1083; reigned 1065-1083) had taken a Khotanese woman named Zhangmou Xiabu ͻˣą3 either as his servant or his mistress. She had two sons— obviously not from Dongzhan—Aligu ƣ*Ė (1040-1096; reigned 1083-1096) and Su’nan Dangzheng ȄǔγȽ (died between 1096 and 1099).79 Dongzhan adopted Aligu, who was his junior by only eight years, and thus the Khotanese Aligu became the successor to the Tsong kha throne in 1083.
FINAL REMARKS
The picture that has been drawn here of the relations of Tsong kha to its neighbours on the Silk Road still remains sketchy due to the scarcity of sources. Hence, only a few general observations seem warranted:
1. Tsong kha played a vital strategic role during most of the eleventh century and thus continuously entertained political, military and economic relations with its many neighbours, of which the intensity varied according to the actual geopolitical situation.
77 See nn. 69, 70. 78 It is usually assumed that the cave was closed in or before 1035 in order to protect the documents from the advancing Tangut troops. Alternatively, it has been proposed that the cave served as a deposit for ‘sacred rubbish’. For summaries of the different theories, see HAMILTON 1996: 136 and RONG 1996: 23-24. However, according to Rong, the cave did not serve as a deposit for ‘sacred rubbish’ but was the storage room of the former Sanjie Monastery. Furthermore, he assumes that the cave was closed in the early eleventh century when Khotan was attacked by the Qarakhanids (RONG 1996). In my opinion, advancing Muslim troops seem more likely to have precipitated the concealment of these documents than the advent of the Buddhist Tanguts in the 1030s. However, the question of when the cave was actually sealed, at the beginning or maybe only towards the end of the eleventh century, requires further research. 79 See HORLEMANN 2004: 86. 98 BIANCA HORLEMANN
2. Hardly any information is available on religious and cultural exchange. However, we can presume that this lack of information is mainly due to the fact that we must rely on official and semi-official Chinese sources. These are known to be preoccupied with political affairs and to neglect religion and culture.
3. At first glance, it seems surprising that our sources do not mention ties between Tsong kha and Shazhou/Dunhuang. However, this might further support the hypothesis that during most of the tenth and eleventh centuries Shazhou was not an independent pol- itical entity but probably part of the Uighur realm of either Ganzhou or Xizhou, and later under Tangut control.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BIRAN, M. 2001. Qarakhanid studies, a view from the Qara Khitai edge. Études Karakhanides, Cahiers d’Asie Centrale 9, 77-88. BRAG DGON DKON MCHOG BSTAN PA RAB RGYAS. 1987. Mdo smad chos ’byung [=A mdo chos ’byung]. Lanzhou: Kan su’i mi rigs dpe skrun khang. ———. 1989. Anduo zhengjiao shi ʴʥɉǚȖ, [A Chinese Translation of the A mdo chos ’byung]. Lanzhou: Gansu chubanshe ɊƝǸŐŧ. ’BROM STON GZHON NU BLOS GROS [?]. 1993. Jo bo rje dpal ldan a ti sha’i rnam thar bka’ gdams pha chos. Ziling: Mtsho sngon mi rigs dpe skrun khang. ዪɸ. 2002. Yisilan jiao zai Tulufan diqu de chuanboا CHEN GUOGUANG (10-15 shiji) ɪΖ∓ǚʟʏޔʞᅒš⇐¶ (10-15 Ǡã). Xiyu yanjiu 3, 56-63. CLARK, L. 1996. The early Turkic and Sarig Yugur counting systems. In R.E. EMMERICK, et al. (eds), Turfan, Khotan und Dunhuang. Vorträge der Tagung ‘Annemarie v. Gabain und die Turfanforschung’, veranstaltet von der Berlin-Brandenburgischen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Berlin (9.-12.12.1994). Berlin: Berlin- Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Akademie Verlag, 18- 49. DUNNELL, R.W. 1994. The Hsi Hsia. In H. FRANKE AND D. TWITCHETT (eds), The Cambridge History of China, vol. 6, Alien regimes and border states, 907-1368. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 154-214. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 99
———. 1996. The Great State of White and High. Buddhism and State Formation in Eleventh-Century Xia. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press. Gansu xin tongzhi ɊƝťʍ (1909?), by SHENG YUN ƪƚ, (n. p.) Ganzhou fuzhi Ɋʸ¼ (1976), by ZHONG GENGQI ԅºî, edition: Taipeh: Chengwen chubanshe. GENG SHIMIN. 2004. The Study of Uighurica from Turfan and Dunhuang in China. In D. DURKIN-MEISTERERNST, et al. (eds), Turfan Revisited – The first Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk Road. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, 95-99. HAMILTON, J.R. 1955. Les Ouighours à l’époque des Cinq Dynasties d’après les documents chinois. Paris: Imprimerie National. ———. 1996. On the dating of Old Turkish manuscripts from Tunhuang. In R.E. EMMERICK, et al. (eds), Turfan, Khotan und Dunhuang. Vorträge der Tagung ‘Annemarie v. Gabain und die Turfanforschung’, veranstaltet von der Berlin-Brandenburgischen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Berlin (9.-12.12.1994). Berlin: Berlin- Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Akademie Verlag, 18- 49. ———. 2004. Remarks concerning Turfan stake inscription III. In D. DURKIN-MEISTERERNST, et al. (eds), Turfan Revisited – The first Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk Road. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, 121-24. HOPPE, T. 1998. Die ethnischen Gruppen Xinjiangs: Kulturunterschiede und interethnische Beziehungen. Hamburg: Institut für Asienkunde. HORLEMANN, B. 2004. Aufstieg und Niedergang der Tsong kha- Stammeskonföderation im 11./12. Jahrhundert an der Schnittstelle von Tibet, China und Zentralasien [The Rise and Fall of the Tsong kha Tribal Confederation in the eleventh/twelfth Century at the Crossroad of Tibet, China and Central Asia]. Frankfurt: Peter Lang. ———. 2005. On the origin of Jiaosiluo, the first ruler of the Tsong kha tribal confederation in eleventh century A mdo. Zentralasiatische Studien 34, 127-54. HUA TAO ƈᕣ. 2000. Gaochang Huigu yu Qidan de jiaowang ėāʛࡒ ˣǸƇšɤÃ. Xiyu yanjiu 1, 23-32. IWASAKI TSUTOMU. 1974. On the political power of the Fan-luo-chih regime of Hsi-liang-fu. Tohogaku 47: 25-41. ———. 1986. A Study of Ho-hsi Tibetans during the Northern Sung. Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko 44: 57-132. JIANG QIXIANG ɌQડ. 2001. Heihan chao mingcheng kao õ˘Σʔᖟ ˭. Xiyu yanjiu 1, 51-56. 100 BIANCA HORLEMANN
KOTCHNEV, B.D. 2001. Les frontiers du royaume des Karakhanides. Études Karakhanides, Cahiers d’Asie Centrale 9, 41-48. KY ANOV, E.I. 2004. Turfan und Xixia. In D. DURKIN-MEISTERERNST, et al. (eds), Turfan Revisited – The first Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk Road. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, 155-58. Lequanji ↗ɼã. 1934. by ZHANG FANGPING ␔ljȫ. Siku quanshu zhenben chuji, vol. 1246. Shanghai: Shangwu chubanshe. Liangzhou fuzhi beikao ᓋʸ¼⍕˭. 1988. by ZHANG SHU ␔ӽ. Xi’an: Sanqin chubanshe. LIU YINGSHENG. 2004. On the cultural transformation in the areas of eastern Turkestan between the Tang and Song Periods. In D. DURKIN-MEISTER- ERNST, et al. (eds), Turfan Revisited – The first Century of Research into the Arts and Cultures of the Silk Road. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer, 180-83. ȫã. 1971. by ZENG GONG Π⏪. Siku quanshu zhenbenئ Longpingji chuji, vols. 138-139. Taipeh: Shangwu chubanshe. MALJAVKIN, A. 1983. Ujgurskie gosudarstva v IX-XII vv, Novosibirsk: (?). MARTIN, D. 1997. Tibetan Histories, A Bibliography of Tibetan-Language Historical Works. London: Serindia. PETECH, LUCIANO. 1992. The Silk road, Turfan and Tun-huang in the first millennium A.D. In A. CADONNA (ed.), Turfan and Tun-huang, the Texts. Florence: Leo S. Olschki, 1-13. PINKS, E. 1968. Die Uiguren von Kan-chou in der Frühen Sung-Zeit (960- 1028). Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. Qinding huangyu xiyu tuzhi Ԍ£ʴǝ̃ř⌎. 1965. Taipeh: Wenyou shudian. Qingtanglu ƩĠጟ. 1972. By LI YUAN έѴ. In Shuofu ͦƾ chapter 35, by Tao Zongyi ˷¢⇇ (comp.), edition: Taipeh: Taiwan shangwu yinshuguan. .REN SHUMIN ɲ┥ȿ. 1997. Bei Song shiqi de Yutian ǿͲችšɇؚ Xiyu yanjiu 1, 27-32. RICHARDSON, H.E. 1998 [1990]. The Province of the Bde-blon of the Tibetan empire, eighth to ninth centuries. In M. ARIS (ed.), High Peaks and Pure Earth. Collected Writings on Tibetan History and Culture. Hugh Richardson. London: Serindia, 167-76. RONG XINJIANG ᐭť˚. 1996. Dunhuang zangjingdong de xingzhi ji qi ʚ. Dunhuang Tulufanͪװfengbi yuanyin ΑƧĈʀšÔνƯQȎ yanjiu 2, 23-48. Song huiyao jigao Ͳᆨ̎ћŖ. 1957. by XU SONG κĚ. Shanghai: Zhonghua shuju. Songshi ͲȖ. 1990. by TUOTUO ᛟᛟ et al. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 40 vols. THE TSONG KHA CONFEDERATION 101
SUNDERMANN, W. 1992. Iranian Manichaean Turfan texts concerning the Turfan region. In A. CADONNA (ed.), Turfan and Tun-huang, the Texts. Florence: Leo S. Olschki, 63-84. TAN QIXIANG ΟQܵ. 1982-1987. Zhongguo lishi ditu ji ƅዪᅕȖʞ⌎ã /Historical Atlas of China, vol. 6. Beijing: Ditu chubanshe. THOMAS, F.W. 1946. Some notes on Central Asian Kharosthi documents. Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies XI, 513-49. TIAN WEIJIANG Ɏ≸Ă. 2003. Bei Song shiqi Xizhou Huigu xiangguan shishi kaoshu ǿͲች̃ʸʛࡒʼ∔Ȗጅ˭̚. Xiyu yanjiu 1, 8-15. TROMBERT, E. 2000. Les manuscrits chinois de Koutcha – Fonds Pelliot de la Bibliothèque Nationale de France. Paris : Institut des Hautes Études chinoises du Collège de France. UMEMURA HIROSHI. 1996. A Qo o Uyghur King painted in the Buddhist temple of Beshbalïq. In R.E. EMMERICK, et al (eds), Turfan, Khotan und Dunhuang. Vorträge der Tagung ‘Annemarie v. Gabain und die Turfanforschung’, veranstaltet von der Berlin-Brandenburgischen Akademie der Wissenschaften in Berlin (9.-12.12.1994). Berlin: Berlin- Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Akademie Verlag, 361-78. URAY, G. 1988. New contributions to Tibetan documents from the post- Tibetan Tun-huang. In H. UEBACH AND J. PANGLUNG (eds), Tibetan Studies – Proceedings of the 4th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Schloss Hohenkammer – Munich 1985. München: Kommission für Zentralasiatische Studien der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 515-28. VON GABAIN, A. 1973. Das Leben im uigurischen Königreich von Qo o, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. Xin Tangshu ťͮ↠. 1997. by OUYANG XIU ፊኼ͕. Ershisi shi, vol. 11, Beijing: Zhonghua shuju. .☩ŏ. 1986. by LI TAO έןXu zizhi tongjian changbian ĦϙĿ˗ҿ Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 5 vols. YANG RUI ┅ࠐ. 2003. Bei Song shiqi lu shang silu maoyi chutan ǿͲች .ŚↆɡύĀƓƾ. Xiyu yanjiu 3, 33-38إ ZHANG RUILI ␔ʹ. 2003. Wang Yande chu shi Gaochang shiming buzheng Ǟ¿Ǹ<ėā<~ʲ̳. Xiyu yanjiu 3, 39-44. ZHAO RONGZHI ϺᐭĀ. 2001. Lun Yisilan jiao zai Xinjiang xingqi de shehui genyuan ̬ɪΖ∓ǚʟťĂ∕îšŧᆨ ƍ. Xiyu yanjiu 3, 102-07. ZHU QIYUAN |ራƍ. 1988. Jiaosiluo – Songdai zangzu zhengquan ᧮ ⋕ – ͲǮǤɉ⓿. Xining: Qinghai renmin chubanshe.
PART TWO
LITERARY AND ORAL TRANSMISSIONS
THE HISTORY OF THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH: A TIBETAN NARRATIVE FROM DUNHUANG1
Yoshiro Imaeda
FOREWORD
Formerly European historians, relying exclusively on later (that is to say, post-eleventh-century) Tibetan documents, thought that before the introduction of Buddhism, there was a religion in Tibet called ‘Bon’. As Tibetan studies advanced, the more complex reality of the religious situation in ancient Tibet began to emerge. The first important step was to note that Bon was only one element of the religious world and that the Bon pos were only one category of priests of ancient Tibet. It was therefore necessary to dissociate the properly indigenous elements from those that were foreign, and group them together under the designation of ‘nameless religion’ (STEIN 1962: ch. IV, ‘Religion et Coutume’). A further step was undertaken in the article of Madame Ariane Macdonald, ‘Une lecture des Pelliot tibétain 1286, 1287, 1038, 1047 et 1290: Essai sur la formation et l’emploi des mythes politiques dans la religion royale de Sro -bcan sgam-po’, published in 1971. In this article she proposed a different, though still fragmentary, vision
Dedicated to Ariane Macdonald, who in 1971 opened a new perspective on the religious history of ancient Tibet. 1 This is a revised English version of my thesis at the École Pratique des Hautes Études, IVème Section, Paris, which was published in 1981 under the title Histoire du cycle de la naissance et de la mort: Étude d’une texte tibétaine de Touen-houang (Genève/Paris: Librairie Droz). I have taken into account several publications that have appeared since then in order to correct and ameliorate several passages in the original and include new materials, in particular the article of J.W. de Jong, ‘Le Ga avy ha et la Loi de la naissance et de la mort’, which improves the interpretation of several passages of the Ga avy has tra. However, my original argument of 1981 remains essentially unchanged. I heartily thank Ms. Susan Taponier of Paris, a long time friend, for kindly checking my English translation of the French original. Without her help, this chapter would not have been possible. 106 YOSHIRO IMAEDA of the ancient religion practised by the people of Tibet. (For a critical review, see STEIN 1985.) With the help of the Tibetan manuscripts from Dunhuang—the only documents contemporary with the period under study (seventh to tenth centuries)—she identified the fundamental features of the ancient pre-Buddhist religion, which she believed was designated by the term gtsug, or gtsug lag. She further proposed that it was on the basis of gtsug/gtsug lag that the theory of the sovereignty of the ancient kings was founded. Although this is not the place to summarize her arguments, which has been done with clarity and concision by Mme A.M. Blondeau (1976), it is helpful to recall the theory of life and death of this pre-Buddhist religion and the rites that are tied to it, because they directly relate to our study, which also concerns a Tibetan text from Dunhuang. Let us first examine the notion of time, of which the pre-Buddhist theory of death and survival is a part. Time is conceived in the form of great chronological cycles. The first, happy period, which starts with the creation of the world, is called ‘the good period when the gods and the human beings are not separated’. This ‘golden age’ is said to have lasted ten thousand years, and to have ended the day when a demon, imprisoned in the underworld, appeared on the earth. The second, ‘bad period’, is divided into three sub-periods, each one worse than the previous one. It is the period of the gradual degeneration of the tenets of the gtsug, the loss of human attachment to proper religion and the abandonment of its practices. The third and last period is ‘the age of calamities’. This is the worst one of all. It will be followed by ‘the good period of the gods’, which is the beginning of a new cycle marked by the reanimation of those who practised gtsug. On the other hand, according to the conception of survival in this religion, there were two countries for the deceased: one to be avoided and one to be attained. These are ‘the country of miseries and suffering’ (nyon mongs sdug pa’i yul) and ‘the country of joy and happiness’ (dga’ dang skyid pa’i yul), respectively. The latter is the celestial country of the dead (gshin yul) where the deceased await resurrection at the beginning of a new cycle. This explains the fact that the funeral rituals are aimed essentially at sending the deceased persons, guided by psychopomp animals on a perilous journey, to the country of the Dead (gshin yul), where they live happily until their resurrection.2
2 As Mme A. Macdonald has noticed regarding the theory of Time (MACDONALD 1971: 357) and the conception of gtsug lag (376-86), it is probable THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 107
Buddhism, which made its way towards Tibet from India and China as well as from Central Asia, found itself confronted with the ancient indigenous religion. This religion was the foundation of the sovereignty of the ancient kings and the vehicle for concepts and practices that were fundamentally different from and incompatible with those of Buddhism. During the several centuries that followed the introduction of Buddhism, Buddhist disseminators struggled against indigenous religious representations and the followers of the ancient religion who resisted the Buddhists with a philosophy and literature of their own. At the end of this conflict, about which we have no exact knowledge for lack of authentic documents, the elements of the pre-Buddhist religion were absorbed into Buddhism as well as into Bon, which was established as an organised religion from the eleventh century. This process of assimilation was so successful that even the name (if it ever existed) of the ancient religion disappeared from later Tibetan literature. The Dunhuang text that is the subject of this study allows us to witness the first efforts of the disseminators of Buddhism in Tibet.
INTRODUCTION
1. The manuscripts
Among the Dunhuang manuscripts kept at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France in Paris3 and the British Library in London,4
that there are foreign influences (Indian as well as Chinese) in the formation of this ancient religion of Tibet. It is, however, beyond the scope of the present study to look for them, because we are concerned only with the comparison of this pre- Buddhist Tibetan religion as it existed at the end of the eighth century with Buddhism, the newcomer to Tibet. 3 This collection has been catalogued in M. LALOU 1939-61. 4 We think it is useful here to make a brief survey of the manuscripts, in particular the Tibetan manuscripts that concern us directly, which were brought back by Aurel Stein from his second (1906-08) and third (1913-16) expeditions to Central Asia. The total collection was divided in an artificial way into two parts: the mainly “Chinese” collection in the British Museum and the “Tibetan” collection in the India Office Library. Both collections are now preserved in the British Library. We owe to TAKEUCHI Tsuguhito (1998: xv-xxviii) a fairly comprehensive survey of the Tibetan collection in the British Library. There are also Tibetan texts written on the verso of Chinese texts preserved at the British Museum. They have been listed with a short notice of two or three words for each by GRINSTEAD (1963: 36-37). The famous manuscript of the Tibetan Annals 108 YOSHIRO IMAEDA there is a story written entirely in verses of seven syllables, which we have designated in this study by the title History of the cycle of birth and death. We have decided on this title after taking into account, on the one hand, the term skye shi’i lo rgyus ‘history of birth and death’, a term employed here and there in the manuscripts to designate the principal subject of the text, and on the other hand, the title which is found at the beginning of two manuscripts: Skye shi ’khor lo’i chos kyi yi ge le’u ‘Chapter of the treatise of the law of the wheel (=cycle) of birth and death’ (PT 220), and Skye shi ’khor lo’i le’u bstan pa’// lha bu rin chen lag (= lags) cis (= gis) dris pa, ‘Chapter of the cycle of birth and death exposed at the request of the son of the gods named Rin chen, “Jewel”’5 (IOL Tib J 345). To date, we have discovered nine copies of this text, all of them incomplete. Although none of the copies contains the complete text, we have been able to establish an almost integral text of the History by collating them. First, here is a brief description of each of the copies.
under the number Or. 8212 (187), which was edited and translated by F.W. Thomas in DTH: 53-75, is among them. As for the Tibetan collection of the India Office Library, its inventory does not seem to have been done in a systematic way. First, a certain number of manuscripts have been published with a description, a transcription of the text, and an annotated translation by THOMAS (1935-55 and 1957). Then, LA VALLÉE POUSSIN (1962) treated almost the entire collection in his Catalogue, giving each manuscript a serial number. More recently, the research team of the Toyo Bunko (Oriental Library), Tokyo, has published a more exhaustive list in Toyo Bunko. In this study, we use the abbreviation IOL Tib J followed by the number of the Catologue to designate the manuscripts in this collection. As for the manuscripts that were not inventoried by La Vallée Poussin, we have systematically designated them by the abbreviation I. O., followed by the number of the volume and the number of the folio in which they are currently preserved. 5 The name of this principal person of the History appears as Rin chen (or cen) in two syllables, or as Rin chen (or cen) lags (or lag) in three syllables. The third syllable is used when it is necessary to add a syllable to achieve the verse in seven syllables of our History. STEIN (1983: 179) suggests that the name is Rin chen lags and that it is a translation of Shancai, the Chinese name of Sudhana, the main character in the Ga avy has tra, which inspired Chapter II of our History. However, we think that the name of our character is Rin chen and that lags is an emphatic syllable. Furthermore, even if one accepts that the name Rin chen lags is inspired by, even if not translated from, Sudhana of the Ga avy has tra, there is no particular reason to assume that it is a translation from the Chinese name Shancai, because Rin chen lags may as well be an older rendering of the Indian name Sudhana, as Nor bzangs is the later canonical rendering: Rin chen = nor = dhana; lags = bzangs = su. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 109
PT 218 The manuscript has thirty-five folios. The sheets used for the present manuscript measure approximately 10 cm by 33 cm and have one or sometimes two holes in the middle. They are pieces (probably halves) of larger sheets measuring approximately 20 cm by 33 cm, of which we see half of the encircled hole.
Illustration (1)
As for the number of holes perforated in the folios for the string used to keep them together (except the half-hole originating from the original large folio), it seems that at the beginning there was only one hole, made before writing. Then, so that the hole enlarged by use would not interfere with the writing, another one was sometimes added nearby. One notices this on the following sixteen folios: kha to da (10), ba to ja (5) and ya. The folios have six or seven lines on each side (recto and verso), and eight lines exceptionally on the recto of folios pha and tsa and the verso of folio zha. The text of our History seems to end on the verso of the last folio khma, at the second, rather abraded line, which reads as follows, after the actual end of the text of the History: // lha rin cen (one illegible syllable) rdzogs (two or three illegible syllables) chos dbyangs gyis bris te zhus bs..on (two illegible syllables) ..s // This is the colophon of the manuscript, which may be translated as follows: ‘End [of the treatise exposed at the request of] Rin chen, [son of the] gods. [The manuscript has been] copied and revised by Chos dbyangs…’ The name of this copyist does not appear in other Tibetan manuscripts from Dunhuang and therefore we cannot know his identity. There are two syllables at the beginning of the third line: bsngo’ ba’ //. The remaining part of the verso is devoid of text. Did the 110 YOSHIRO IMAEDA copyist start a new text? The presence of these two syllables poses a crucial problem for the interpretation of the History. We will come back to this question later. Instead of the usual pagination which consists of putting the serial number of folios in the left margin of the recto using Tibetan numbers either in figures or written in letters, this manuscript is paginated by the letters of the Tibetan alphabet. In later Tibetan texts, the letters of the alphabet are normally used only to designate one volume of a collection, or to distinguish different texts within a single volume. It is most probably this unusual pagination that prompted Marcelle Lalou to ask if the manuscript was ‘coherent’ at the end of her description (Inventaire, I: 62). In fact, the analysis of the text allows us to establish the order according to the Tibetan alphabet: kha, ga, nga … ha, a, kna, khna, gna, ngna, kma, khma. The pagination of the last six folios, which consists in writing another letter under each letter of the Tibetan alphabet (in this case na and ma), is also employed in other Tibetan manuscripts from Dunhuang, such as PT 291, 1336, 1337, 1349, 1343, 1480, IOL Tib J 67 and 382. Among them, PT 291, in particular, consists of seven folios that do not follow one another. However, the four folios marked respectively kna, khna, gna, and ngna can be read as a whole. This is the same system of pagination used in our manuscript.6 Our manuscript is missing only the first folio, the marginal pagination of which should be ka. Marcelle Lalou took folio kna to be the first one of the manuscript and labelled it ‘Pelliot tibétain 218’, which, as a rule, should appear only on the first folio. This error is understandable given that the first folio was, and still is, missing. Three irregularities can be observed in the make-up of the folios: 1. In its original state, the manuscript included two folios cha and da, each with a text on recto and verso. But, unlike the others, each of these folios was composed of two folios pasted together, one with the text of the recto and the other with that of the verso. The restoration department of the Bibliothèque Nationale separated the two folios and found that the folio that contains the text of the recto also has a text on the verso, but written in the direction opposite to normal reading. Therefore, in the cases of folios cha and da, we find a folio (a) with a text of the recto and the verso, and a folio (b) with
6 For other pagination systems found among the Tibetan manuscripts from Dunhuang, see Catalogue, Pagination: xv-xvi. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 111 only a text on the verso and its empty side pasted to the verso of folio (a) in normal reading order. The text on the verso of folio (b) is identical, except for a few variants, to that on the verso of folio (a). We think that the copyist of folios cha and da was mistaken twice in the writing direction of the text of the verso and judged it preferable to write the text of the verso on a new folio—leaving the recto of this folio devoid of text—which he later pasted in the correct direction on top of the verso of folio (a), deleting in this way the verso of folio (a) to obtain a normal layout for the reading of the text. In the photographic reproduction of the manuscript given in IMAEDA 1981, we have placed the verso of folio (a) of folios cha and da in the normal direction to facilitate reading. However, this is how folios cha and da actually look:
Illustration (2)
2. On the recto of folio nya, there are five lines of text in the normal direction and two lines and a syllable written in the reverse direction (that is, upside down) and crossed out by a line. The part of the text written in this way (the lower part of the folio is mutilated, as we shall see later) corresponds, except for a few spelling variations, to that written in the normal direction. In the present state of the folio, we cannot understand the reason for this anomaly. There may have been an important error in the lost part of the text written upside down, which the copyist noticed after starting the third line, forcing him to delete what he had already written and to start writing the same text again on the other side of the folio without throwing away the folio already begun. 112 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
3. The passage which extends from folio a, recto, l. 6, to folio kna, verso, l. 1, is only a repetition of the preceding passage which goes from folio ha, recto, l. 3 to folio a, recto, l. 6. The explanation for this anomaly seems to be the unusual system of pagination of the manuscript: the copyist went in the ordinary manner to the beginning of line 6 of folio a, recto—the last letter of the Tibetan alphabet— where the discourse by the teacher Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan ends and that of the Buddha kyamuni is announced. At this point, the copyist copied a passage from line 3, folio ha, recto to line 6 of the verso that precedes folio a in order to fill the remaining part of folio a, recto and its entire verso. There is no logical reason for this repetition. Then, just at the beginning of folio kna—the first folio with a pagination composed of two letters of the Tibetan alphabet— from the recto to the verso, l. 1, one again reads the announcement of the account of the Buddha kyamuni by Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan, just as it was written between folio ha, verso, l. 6 and folio a, recto, l. 6. The copyist may have thought that readers might make a mistake by misunderstanding his pagination system and so start reading the manuscript from folio kna. In this case, readers would start by reading the announcement of the story of the Buddha kyamuni and then go on to the story itself, which ultimately can be considered as a unified entity. Besides this, the lower parts of nine consecutive folios from cha to pha have been mutilated by a tear. This makes it impossible to read the text of the torn part. Except for this, and the fact that the margins of certain folios and the verso of the last folio khma are rather worn, the manuscript is quite legible on the whole and more complete than the others. We have therefore taken this manuscript as the basis for our study.
PT 219 Concertina of six folios. One finds in this manuscript two passages of the History. The first, on the recto, corresponds to the text of PT 218 from folio ta, verso, l. 6, to folio na, recto, l. 5, while the second, on the verso, corresponds to the text from folio la, verso, l. 6, to folio ha, recto, l. 6. This manuscript, together with the following one, has been published in facsimile in SPANIEN AND IMAEDA 1978: plates 161-64 (PT 219) and 165 (PT 220).
THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 113
PT 220 Fragment of a scroll. One finds in this manuscript twenty-one lines from which the right half is missing, and giving the beginning of the History. The first eleven lines contain a part that is missing in PT 218 and the last ten lines correspond to the text of folio kha.
PT 366-367 Under two different, but successive, shelf marks, three consec- utive folios from the same concertina. The recto contains a part of our History from line 6 of PT 220 to line 4 of folio kha, recto of PT 218. On the verso there is a passage from another text entitled Lha yul du lam bstan pa, ‘Account of the way to the country of the gods’, which Marcelle Lalou studied twice.7
IOL Tib J 99 Two non-consecutive folios of a concertina. On one side, two passages of the History correspond to the text of PT 218, folio ta, verso, ll. 1-6, and folio cha, recto, l. 3 to verso, l. 1. On the other side, one finds two texts, apparently of Buddhist inspiration, which seem to have no relation to the History.
IOL Tib J 151 Concertina of ten folios. On the recto, the text corresponds to a passage from PT 218 that starts at folio nga, verso, l. 3 and ends at folio nya, verso, l. 7. The verso contains a passage of the text that is also found on the verso of PT 366 and 367, namely the Lha yul du lam bstan pa. We will see later the significance of the presence of this text together with our History in these two manuscripts.
IOL Tib J 345 Fragment of a scroll with twenty-two lines of which the last eighteen (ll. 5 to 22) contain the beginning of our History up to line 10 in PT 220. The first four severely mutilated lines seem to belong to a Buddhist text, without any clear relationship to our History.
I. O. vol. 69, folio 17 Four fragments of a severely mutilated scroll that have been assembled in a disorderly manner. One of the fragments corresponds to the passage found in lines 1 to 12 of PT 220, and the three other
7 See LALOU 1938 and LALOU 1949. 114 YOSHIRO IMAEDA fragments correspond to passages or letters of PT 218, folio ga, recto, l. 1 to folio nga, recto, l. 5. The synoptic table below shows the correspondences between these nine manuscripts.
Synoptic table of the correspondences among the manuscripts THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 115
2. Analysis of the History: Canonical Sources and the Problem Posed by its Composition
Before undertaking a complete translation of the History, here is a general outline of it. There are no elisions in the text. • Sanskrit title (IOL Tib J 345, l. 5) • Tibetan title (PT 220, l. 1, and IOL Tib J 345, ll. 5 -6; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag.1, l. 1) • I. Description of a country of the gods and the sudden death of its king named ’Od ’bar rgyal, ‘King of Blazing Light’. 1. Splendour of the king of the gods, ’Od ’bar rgyal, and his country (PT 220, ll. 1-6; PT 366, folio 1, l. 1; IOL Tib J 345, ll. 6-15; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag. 1, ll. 2-7). 2. His sudden death and the great confusion that results among his entourage and in particular for his son, named Rin chen, ‘Jewel’ (PT 220, ll. 6-9; PT 366, folio 1, l. 1, to folio 2, l. 1; IOL Tib J 345, ll. 15-21; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag. 1, ll. 7- 10). 3. Appearance of ’Phrul chen Dutara, who explains that the death of ’Od ’bar rgyal is due to the law of birth and death (PT 218, folio kha. recto, l. 1; PT 220, ll. 10-11; PT 366, folio 2, l. 1 up to PT 367, l. 1; IOL Tib J 345, l. 21 up to the end; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag.1, l. 11-12). 4. Rin chen asks Dutara what he must do so that (his dead father) will return (slar mchi) [to life], whether it will be possible to encounter him (phrad), and what he must do so that he will be at peace and happy (bde zhing skyid pa). (PT 218, folio kha, recto, l. 1 to verso, l.1; PT 220, ll.12-17; PT 367, l. 1 up to the end; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag. 1, l. 14 up to the end). • II. Pilgrimage of Rin chen in search of the remedy against the law of birth and death: he encounters and engages in dialogue in different places with a series of twenty-five teachers who are unable to give him the remedy (PT 218, folio kha, verso, l.1, to folio kna, verso, l.3; PT 220, l.17, up to the end; PT 219, IOL Tib J 99, IOL Tib J 151; I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, fragments 2, 3 and 4). • III. In the country of Magadha, the encounter of Rin chen with kyamuni, who at last explains the law of birth and death and its remedy. 1. Description of kyamuni and his country (PT 218, folio kna, verso, l. 3, to folio khna, verso, l. 4). 2. Speech of kyamuni: 116 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
a. Inevitability of death (PT 218, folio khna, verso, l. 4, to folio gna, recto, l. 2). b. Longevity of the various categories of gods (PT 218, folio gna, recto, l. 2, to folio ngna, recto, l. 5). c. Reprehensible practices of certain funeral rituals (PT 218, folio ngna, recto, l. 5, to folio ngna, verso, l. 7). d. Merits of the U avijay -dh ra ‘formula of the victorious cranial protuberance’, which is the remedy against death (PT 218, folio ngna, verso, l. 7, up to the end).
Merely reading this analysis raises a number of fundamental questions concerning the composition of this History, its titles, its sources, the identity of its author, the date of its composition and the religious context to which it belongs. Let us first examine the problem of titles. Our History has two, one in (Tibetan-transliterated) Sanskrit, and the other in Tibetan.
Sanskrit title Only IOL Tib J 345 (l. 5) gives the Sanskrit title: rgya gar gyi skad du sang gra dar ma de, ‘In the language of India, Sangradarmade’.8 The unusual presence of the particle gyi between rgya gar and skad, the strangeness of the compound ending in de, which does not make much sense in Sanskrit, and above all, the literary form of the History that we are going to examine, suggest that the Sanskrit title is a fictional one invented to give our History the appearance of being the translation of a Sanskrit text to give it greater authenticity.
Tibetan title PT 220 (l. 1): skye shi ’khor ba’i chos kyi yi ge le’u, ‘the chapter of the treatise on the law of the cycle of birth and death’. The compound skye shi, ‘birth and death’, is attested in another Dunhuang manuscript, IOL Tib J 710 (see DEMIÉVILLE 1970: 46), where it renders the Sanskrit sa s ra, which, according to the Buddhist terminology fixed in 814, is normally rendered ’khor ba (Mvp, nos. 797, 2165).9 The successive enumeration of the two compounds skye shi and ’khor ba in our title therefore seems in a
8 For EIMER (1981: 561), this is sa kramadharmade an , and for DE JONG (1985: 8) it is sa s radharma. 9 TUCCI 1958: 48 and YAMAGUCHI 1979: 12. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 117 sense redundant. The author no doubt wanted to express in a concrete manner the Buddhist notion of sa s ra ‘transmigration’, which was not yet familiar to his Tibetan readers. Further, the terminology was probably not yet fixed. The term chos kyi yi ge is also attested in another Tibetan manuscript, PT 92 (Inventaire I: 30): thard pa chen po phyogsu rgyas pa’i chos kyi yi ge, which is the abbreviated Tibetan title of a Buddhist text translated from Chinese. This Tibetan translation is incorporated into the current Kanjur (P no. 930): ’Phags pa thar pa chen po phyogs su rgyas pa ’gyod tshang kyis sdig sbyangs te sangs rgyas su grub par rnam par bkod pa shes bya ba theg pa chen po’i mdo. We can see that the term chos kyi yi ge ‘religious writing’ corresponds to mdo, a Tibetan term usually used to translate the Sanskrit word s tra. It seems, then, that before the term mdo was adopted to translate the term s tra, compounds like chos kyi yi ge, or dar ma (the phonetic rendering of the Sanskrit dharma ‘law’, see PT 33, 735, 1003, 1005 etc.) were often used to designate this same word.10 As for the word le’u, it generally designates a ‘chapter’, or ‘part’ of a work. Is our History itself a part of a larger work? We will come back to this question later.
IOL Tib J 345 (l. 5 to 6): skye shi ’khor lo’i le’u bstan pa’ // Lha bu rin chen lag (=lags ) cis (= gis ) dris pa’ // ‘Chapter of the cycle of birth and death, presented at the request of the son of the gods named Rin chen’. It is evident that the term ’khor lo ‘wheel’ (Skt. cakra) is used here in the same sense as ’khor ba in the preceding title.
I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17. The only remaining part of the first line of the fragment 1 reads as follows: … dun te // lha bu rin … The second line, again very fragmentary, contains a passage corresponding to the text of the last two syllables of line 7 and the first three of line 8 of IOL Tib J 345. A comparison of this fragment with the other two contained in PT 220 and IOL Tib J 345 leads us to believe that the first line must have been part of the title of our History. It must have been different from that of IOL Tib J 345, at least the part that precedes lha bu rin (chen), but the manuscript is too fragmentary to allow us to reconstruct the whole title.11
10 Cf. RICHARDSON 1977 and STEIN 1983: 175. 11 Refer to the collated transcription of Chapter I given below. 118 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Now let us tackle the problem of sources by quickly reviewing the plot of the History. All of Chapter I seems to be the original composition of the author, inspired by canonical sources. It relates the sudden death of the king of the gods, King of Blazing Light, the confusion of his son Rin chen, and finally, the departure of Rin chen in search of the remedy against death following the advice of ’Phrul chen Dutara. This introduction is of paramount importance for understanding the entire History. It should be noted, first of all, that Dutara’s epithet, ’phrul chen, ‘great ’phrul’,12 had a well defined and important meaning in pre- Buddhist Tibetan religion. In fact, ’phrul was one of the two supernatural faculties, with byin, characteristic of the divine nature of Tibetan kings. The term ’phrul designated first a set of magical powers, and in particular, the ability to move between the sky and the earth. It also designated a mental and intellectual capacity superior to that of ordinary human beings. Rin chen, upset by the unexpected death of his father, and hoping that his father will return to life and become as before (slar ’ong sngon bzhin yod du re), asks Dutara what he must do in order for his father to live again, so that it will be possible to encounter him (ji bgyis slar mchi ’phrad par rung), and further, what he must do to ensure his father’s peace and happiness (ji bgyis bde bzhin skyid par ’gyur). Dutara replies, ‘Although I know that birth and death exist, I do not know what to do to remedy it (skye shi yod par ’tshal du bas // de la ci phan bdag ma ’tshal).’ As he himself is unable to give a satisfactory reply, Dutara advises Rin chen to go in search of other teachers who might know the answer. So, fearing that his deceased father might not reach the place of peace and happiness (bde skyid gnas), Rin chen departs on a pilgrimage in search of the law of birth and death, a pilgrimage which occupies all of Chapter II of the History. Expressions such as ‘to be at peace and happy’ (bde zhing skyid pa), and especially ‘the place of peace and happiness’ (bde skyid gnas) immediately recall dga’ skyid yul ‘the country of joy and happiness’, which characterises the country of the Dead to which the funeral ritual of the pre-Buddhist religion was intended to send the
12 Although this name seems to be a Tibetan transcription of a Sanskrit name, it is difficult to reconstruct the original name. Is there any link between Dutara and Dh tar ja, the name of a bodhisattva attested in the Ga avy has tra? (EDGERTON 1970: 286). We owe this reference to Mme A.M. Blondeau. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 119 deceased person.13 The author of our History does not use the literal expression employed in the indigenous pre-Buddhist religion, but changes dga’ ‘joy’ to bde ‘peace, comfort’. However, it is obvious that they are one and the same country, not only in the intention of the author but also in the eyes of the readers—followers of the ancient religion to whom our History is addressed. On the other hand, the word phan (pa), which appears in Dutara’s reply, and which we have translated ‘to remedy’, is used in Tibetan Buddhist terminology to translate the Sanskrit term hita ‘benefit, beneficial’ (Mvp, no. 2871, etc.). It is also employed the compound phan yon, which translates the Sanskrit anu a s ‘merit’ (Mvp, no. 2626). However, we should recall that the same word, phan (pa), was used in the pre-Buddhist religion as a technical term to desig- nate, in the context of funeral ritual, the success (phan) or the failure (ma /mi phan) to ‘cure’ or revive the deceased.14 In this context the response of Dutara can be better translated, ‘I don’t know what to do to bring the deceased back to life.’ It is therefore clear, except for some minor terminological variations, that the attitude of Rin chen in this situation represents exactly the approach to death that one would assume held sway based on a reading of pre-Buddhist funeral rituals. However, the organisation of this beginning can be compared with that of the Purification of All Evil Destinies (Sarvadurgati- pari odhanatantra), which is discussed at the end of our History.15 In this Buddhist text, the god named Vimalama iprabha (Nor bu dri ma med pa’i ’od) ‘Pure Jewel Light’ suddenly passes away and falls from the assembly of Thirty-three Gods into the great hell of Av ci. In this unexpected situation, the gods, starting with Indra, ask the Buddha, ‘O Lord, where is he reborn? Is he experiencing happiness or sorrow? … O Blessed One, how can he be saved from such a succession of suffering? How can he be freed from accumulation of suffering? Save O Lord, save O Blessed One.’16 The similarity of the situation, the presence of the element ’od ‘light’ in the names of both personalities, and the confusion raised by their deaths among their retinues suggest that the framework of our History may have been modelled on that of the Sarvadurgatipari odhanatantra, which,
13 STEIN 1971: 497, n. 52. 14 STEIN 1971: 501, 512, 522, 524, 526 etc. 15 This has been suggested by KAPSTEIN (2000: 206, n. 20). 16 SKORUPSKI 1983: 5. 120 YOSHIRO IMAEDA judging from the number of Dunhuang manuscripts related to it,17 had become well-known in Tibet by this time. We will return to this question later. Turning now to Chapter II, we can state from the outset that it is a much abbreviated adaptation of the famous pilgrimage of Sudhana (Nor bzangs) in the Ga avy has tra (Sdong po bkod pa).18 This s tra, which was widely disseminated, occupies a substantial part of the work entitled Buddh vata saka (Sangs rgyas phal po che). Its Sanskrit text has been edited twice, by SUZUKI AND IZUMI (1934-46, 1949), and by VAIDYA (1960), and has been translated into English from the Chinese (CLEARY 1984-87) We will base our study on the Tibetan version (P no. 761, chapter 45; vol. 26, pp. 117-315), consulting the Sanskrit original (in Vaidya’s edition) as necessary. It goes without saying that the best way to demonstrate that our History depends on the Ga avy has tra would be to detail the cor- responding passages in both of them. However, because the Ga a- vy has tra is very voluminous and, as we shall see later, of limited interest for our study, we are not going to undertake such a
17 We have a large number of manuscripts from Dunhuang in various forms concerning this canonical text. First, we have a folio that has the abbreviated fundamental formula (rtsa ba’i rig pa) used in this tantra, PT 419. This formula is found in a text entitled Dug gsum ’dul ba ‘Taming of the three poisons’: IOL Tib J 420, 421 (complete), 720 (fragment) and PT 37 (incomplete at the beginning). This text recommends as a remedy against the three poisons (see n. 65) the following three formulae: 1) that of Sarvadurgatipari odhana, 2) that of a deity who we cannot identify for the time being, and 3) that of Avalokite vara. The last one is the famous formula in six syllables Om ma i padme h , which is usually absent from the Dunhuang manuscripts. Cf. IMAEDA 1979. We find also in PT 389 one of the ma alas presented in this tantra, which has the Buddha kyamuni in the centre. LALOU (1936), in publishing this manuscript, did not identify this ma ala. For the iconographic detail, see P no. 116, vol. 5, pp. 88-4-8 to 88-5-4, and no. 3451 (commentary by Buddhaguhya), vol. 76, pp. 34-3-5 to 35-3-5. See also SAKAI 1969 and UJIKE 1975. Finally, we have two rituals concerning this ma ala: 1) IOL Tib J 439-712 (these two are in fact a single manuscript) which seem rather detailed and 2) PT 37, 67, 298 and IOL Tib J 440, a ritual to perform at the four gates of the ma ala. 18 Refer to RENOU AND FILLIOZAT 1953: no. 2012 (Sanskrit text), no. 2037 (Tibetan text) and no. 2112 (Chinese version). On the other hand, the Ga avy has tra is one of the nine most popular texts among the Buddhists of Nepal; see Hodgeson 1874: 13. The pilgrimage of Sudhana, which is the main theme of the Ga avy has tra, gave birth to various artistic works (FONTEIN 1967). According to the Sba bzhed, the Ga avy has tra was also adapted to illustrate the wall of Bsam yas, the first monastic complex of Tibet (STEIN 1961: 37). The story of Nor bzangs (Sudhana) also illustrates the eleventh-century monastery of Tabo in Western Tibet (STEINKELLNER 1995). THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 121 demonstration here. We will simply point out certain significant differences between the two versions, which we think are sufficient to illustrate the peculiar features of our History in comparison with the available Sanskrit version. First of all, from a stylistic point of view, the prose text of the Ga avy has tra is rendered in verses of seven syllables in our History (a feature that we have of course not been able to retain in our translation). Furthermore, at the end of each visit of Rin chen to the teachers he encounters, three onomatopoeias—pu ru ru, si li li and ti ri ri19—are added, which are absent from the Ga avy ha- s tra. The presence of these onomatopoeias, which are usually found in songs, and the style of our History written entirely in verses of seven syllables to facilitate memorisation, suggest that our History was at least partially sung. Secondly, while in the Ga avy has tra Sudhana visits a total of fifty-five teachers, from Mañju r at the outset to Samantabhadra at the end, with Avalokite vara in the middle (twenty-eighth), Rin chen in our History visits only twenty-seven teachers, counting Dutara as the first and kyamuni as the last. Apart from these and other mod- ifications, moreover, we should point out that the author of the History used only the first half of the itinerary of Sudhana’s pilgrimage. As for the volume of the text, which comprises 195 folios of large format in the s tra, it is considerably reduced to 30 folios of small format in our History. To show the manner and the extent to which the author of the History abridged the text of the Ga avy has tra, here is the passage recounting Sudhana’s visit to the wandering ascetic Sarvag min (Thams cad du ’gro ba) ‘One who goes every- where’20 (no. 21 of list B of the teachers given below), corres- ponding to the visit of Rin chen to Kun tu ’gro ba, ‘One who goes everywhere’, here qualified as tshangs pa21 (no. 20 on list A of the teachers). First, the passage from our History:
19 Two of them are attested in another manuscript from Dunhuang, DTH: 116: si li li and pu ru ru. See, too, STEIN 1956: 397, and HELLFER 1977: 386-87. 20 P vol. 26, pp. 187-2-4 to 188-4-4; VAIDYA 1960: 137-39. 21 In the Tibetan translation of the Ga avy has tra, this teacher is described as an kun tu rgyu (parivr jaka) ‘wandering ascetic’ and named Thams cad du ’gro ba (Sarvag min) ‘One who goes everywhere’. However in our Dunhunag text, he is described as a tshangs pa named Kun tu ’gro ba ‘One who goes everywhere’. It may be that, at the time of the writing of our History, before being used in classical Buddhist terminology to translate the Indian deity Brahm (Mvp, 3088 etc.), the term tshangs pa designated in the pre-Buddhist terminology a category of religious 122 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
(folio za, verso) Then, after having crossed many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, climbed the mountain Shin tu rnyed pa ‘Well found’. There he saw tshangs pa Kun tu ’gro ba ‘One who goes everywhere’, who had an excellent colour and radiated light like the sun and the moon. His splendour and his virtues were blazing and he was encircled by a retinue of ten thousand tshangs pa. Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of Kun tu ’gro ba and joined his hands to say, ‘O tshangs pa, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came here to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I pray you, tshangs pa, instruct me.’ He beseeched him in this way with numerous pleasant words. Kun tu ’gro ba replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Kun tu ’gro ba, have found the door of luminous knowledge (ye shes snang ba’i sgo). I instruct all creatures using various means suitable to their respective vocations. These are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ (folio ’a, recto) Rin chen responded, ‘My father is named ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred (tshe ’phos), and he has changed bodies (lus rjes),22 what must I do so that he will return [to life] (slar mchis), and so that it will be possible to encounter (phrad) him again? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy (bde zhing skyid pa)?’ Thus he asked. Kun tu ’gro ba replied, ‘It is the law (chos) of birth and death. The history (lo rgyus) of birth and death is extremely profound. I do not understand its principle (chos tshul). Good man, go and ask Utpala, the head of the merchants, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully, and, in search of the doctrine (chos tshul) of birth and death, continued his journey with his suite to encounter Utpala, the head of the merchants; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li, and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
Now, here is the parallel passage from the Ga avy has tra:
(pp. 187-2) Then, Sudhana, son of the head of the merchants, remembered clearly Acal (Mi g.yo ba), the ‘Immovable’, the person or indigenous that which we cannot determine with certainty today. We have kept the Tibetan term tshangs pa in our translation because it is peculiar to our text. 22 The first part of this expression designates death and the second part rebirth in another life. This expression is used later in Tibetan Buddhist terminology as a synonym for transmigration (sa s ra). THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 123
woman who had taken the five vows (up sik , dge bsnyen ma) and her instructions—what she had taught, well taught, promulgated, explained, said, well said, expressed, analysed, declared and widely taught. In believing, following, understanding, accepting, examining and discerning them, he went from one place to another, from one country to another. Travelling in this way, he arrived in the country of Amitatosala (Dga’ ’dzin tshad med pa) the ‘Country which brings limitless joy’,23 and looked for the town of Tosala (Dga’ ba ’dzin pa) the ‘Town which brings joy’. At sunset, he entered the town of Tosala. (187-3). Arriving at a crossroad, he looked for the wandering ascetic (parivr jaka, kun tu rgyu) Sarvag min (Thams cad du ’gro ba) the ‘One who goes everywhere’, from one place to another, from one crossroad to another and from one district to another. To the north of the town, there was a mountain named Sulabha (Shin tu pad mo) the ‘Easily accessible’,24 where herbs, medicinal plants and trees grew. When night fell, he saw on the top of this mountain a bright light as if the sun was appearing. Having seen it, he rejoiced greatly and thought, ‘I will certainly find my benevolent guide (kaly amitra, dge ba’i bshes gnyen) at the top of this mountain.’ Leaving the town, he went to the mountain Sulabha and climbed it. When he arrived at the top, where a bright light was blazing, he saw from afar Sarvag min. This ascetic was more brilliantly coloured than Mah brahma (Tshangs pa chen po), and was surrounded on all sides by ten thousand Brahmas (Tshangs pa). Sudhana went up close to him and prostrated himself. Then, he walked around him a hundred thousand times, keeping Sarvag min on his right, and then stood in front of him and said, ‘O Saint! Although I have already made the decision to attain the unequalled bodhi (anuttarasamyaksambodhi), I do not yet know what the practices and obligations of the bodhisattva are. (187-4) As I have heard that you, saint, give instructions to bodhisattvas, I came to ask you to teach me the practices and obligations of the bodhisattva.’
23 We have given the English translation of the name of this country according to the Tibetan version. The original Sanskrit word Tosala does not seem to have any particular meaning (MONIER-WILLIAMS 1964: 456), though the Tibetan suggests a derivation from tu , ‘to be pleased’. 24 The Tibetan translation is almost incomprehensible. The element su- of the original Sanskrit is rendered in Tibetan by shin tu, which is perfectly normal and correct. But we fail to understand why the Tibetan word pad mo (=ma ) ‘lotus’ is used to translate labha, which means ‘access, accessible’ (MONIER-WILLIAMS 1964: 1232). 124 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Sarvag min replied, ‘Son of good family, you have already produced the unequalled bodhicitta (the decision to attain bodhi); that is good, that is good. Son of good family, I, Sarvag min, have already taken up the career of the bodhisattva (which consists in) going everywhere. I passed by the door of meditation (sam dhi, ting nge ’dzin) that contemplates all; I have obtained magical power (abhijñ na, rdzu ’phrul) to stay “without reality” (avastuka, dngos med) and without structure (anabhisa sk ra, mngon par ’du bya ba med pa); I entered by the door of luminous knowledge of the prajñ p ramit . Likewise, I can be beneficial to beings through all sorts of means appropriate to their thought and to their intelligence; I can do good to beings regardless of their external appearance, colour, shape, size etc.; their mode of existence, place of birth, way of being born, dwelling place, way of dying, and their vocation; in short: gods (deva, lha), serpents (n ga, klu), “malevolent spirits” (yak a, gnod sbyin), celestial musicians (gandharva, dri za “perfume eaters”), titans (asura , lha ma yin), “birds of prey” (garu a, nam mkha’ lding), “sirens” (ki nara, mi ’am ci), “great serpents” (mahoraga, lto ’phye chen po), the damned (naraka, dmyal ba), animals (tiryañca = tiryagyoni, byol song = dud ’gro), beings of the world of Yama (preta, yi dags), humans (manu a, mi), non-humans (am nu a, mi ma yin),25 those who follow the vehicle of the “auditors” ( r vaka, nyan thos), “Buddhas for themselves” (pratyekabuddha, rang sangs rgyas), and the followers of the “Great Vehicle” (mah y na, theg pa chen po).26 ‘By giving certain beings the dh ra (gzungs) which includes in itself all the sciences of the world,27 I teach them the various sciences of this world. ‘By using the four appropriate means (catv risa graha- vast ni, bsdu ba’i dngos po bzhi),28 I allow certain beings to attain omniscience.
25 This list of different categories of beings is not exhaustive. It is aimed at showing that the acts of the bodhisattva extend to all the beings in the Buddhist cosmology. Cf. RENOU AND FILLIOZAT 1953: nos. 2266-69. 26 This list of the three vehicles—the well-known triple classification of the evolution of Buddhism—has the same purpose as the list of beings just mentioned: to show that the field of activities of the bodhisattva covers everything. 27 These are the five branches of science: 1) grammar ( abda-vidy , sgra’i rig pa), 2) logic (hetu-vidy , gtan tshigs kyi rig pa), 3) philosophy, metaphysics (adhy tma-vidy , nang don rig pa), 4) medicine (cikits -vidya, gso ba rig pa) and 5) arts ( ilpa-sth na-vidy , bzo gnas kyi rig pa). 28 These are the means (up ya, thabs) that the bodhisattva uses to convert beings to Buddhism: 1) gift (d na, sbyin pa), 2) agreeable speech (priya-v dit , snyan par THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 125
‘By praising the bodhicitta to certain beings, I incite them to sow the firm seed of bodhi. ‘By praising all the practices of the bodhisattva to certain beings, I make them pronounce the vow to purify all the countries of the Buddha, and to help all beings to mature. (188-1) ‘By showing certain beings that one experiences the suffering of hell as retribution for bad acts, I make them disgusted with bad acts. ‘By showing certain beings that all the virtues which one acquires by making offerings to the Tath gata lead with certainty to attaining omniscience, I fill them with joy. ‘By praising the virtues of the Tath gata to certain beings, I make them pronounce the vow to attain omniscience, by devotion to the virtues and the body of the Buddha. ‘By praising the great person of the Buddha to certain beings, I make them aspire to obtain the body of the Buddha that is indestructible, spontaneous and capable of acting as Buddha, with application and without interruption. ‘By praising the liberty of the Buddha to certain beings, I make them wish to obtain the body of the Buddha that dominates everything and is stopped by nothing. ‘Son of good family! In this town of Tosala, I preach everywhere: the intersection of four streets, small paths, streets, crossroads of three streets, districts; (188-2) and to everybody— men, women, boys and girls. I take on a body that varies in size and shape according to their thought, preparation, capacity and behaviour. In this way, nobody knows who I am, or from where I come. But the important thing is that I succeed in making myself heard by them and in making them practise without error what I preach to them. ‘In Jambudv pa, there are ninety-six schools of different ideas.29 In order to tame their adherents, I preach to them using the means that are appropriate to them. In this way, in all of Jambudv pa —towns, villages, countries, regions, royal palaces—I do good to all creatures as I am doing in this town.
smra ba), 3) benefit (artha-cary , don spyod pa) and 4) similar objective (sam n- rthat , don ’thun pa). Cf. Mvp, nos. 924-28 and Mochizuki, II: 1856-57. 29 This is the symbolic number used in Buddhist texts to express the various schools of ‘heretical’ thinking; refer to Mochizuki, I: 671-72. 126 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
‘In the same way, I do good on the four continents,30 the “small cosmos made of a thousand universes” (s hasrac dika- lokadh tu),31 the “middle-sized cosmos made of a thousand times a thousand universes” (dvis hasromadhyama-lokadh tu) and the “great cosmos made of a thousand times a thousand times a thousand universes” (tris hasramah s hasra-lokadh tu). In short, in all ten directions, by manifesting myself in different forms and colours, I do good to creatures regardless of their place, base, support, world or direction, (188-3) by all sorts of manners, ways, reasonings, works, acts and languages. ‘O son of good family! I know only this practice: to go and penetrate everywhere. ‘As for other bodhisattvas, they can either assume the same body as each of the creatures (to be converted), or possess concentrations (sam dhi) equal to the number of the bodies of the creatures, or penetrate by means of the magical body into all the places where creatures are, or experience (themselves) the life of each of the creatures of the world, or produce emanations which are agreeable to look at and therefore please everybody, or manifest themselves in accordance with the race, the character and existence of each creature, or observe during numerous æons the vow of “non-attachment” (apratihata, thogs med), or engage in practices as varied as the net of Indra (indraj la), or endeavour tirelessly to do good to beings, or regard with equanimity creatures of the three times, or manifest the state of the knowledge without Self (an tman, bdag med), (188-4) or apply, by great compassion which is illuminating everywhere, to plant the root of good in all creatures. How can I know them all and describe their virtues? ‘O son of good family! In the south there is a country named P thur ra (Khams chen po), “Great country”. There lives the chief of the incense merchants named Utpala-bh mi (Longs spyod Utpala). Go there and ask him how one practises and fulfils the obligations of the bodhisattva.’ Then Sudhana, son of the head of the merchants, prostrated himself, touching with his head the feet of Sarvag min, the wandering ascetic, walked in a circle a hundred thousand times keeping him to his right, looked at him many times and left him.
30 These are the four continents situated at the four sides of Mount Meru: Jambudv pa (South), P rvavideha (East), Avaragod n ya (West) and Uttarakuru (North). See LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome II: 145-46. 31 By successively multiplying by a thousand the basic universe comprising Mount Meru, the four continents, etc, one obtains the three kinds of cosmos enumerated here. Refer to LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome II: 170. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 127
First of all, there is a profound difference in the literary style and length of the two versions. The extract from Chapter II of our History is a versified and much abridged version compared to that of the Ga avy has tra, which is in prose and much lengthier. This is the reason why it is difficult, if not impossible, to understand our History without referring to its source. However, it is not simply an abridged and versified version. While the questions Sudhana asks in the Ga avy has tra concern exclusively the practices of the bodhisattva, in our History Rin chen asks each teacher, ‘What must I do so that my father will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ The reasons for the two pilgrimages are therefore completely different: our History uses the motivation of Sudhana’s pilgrimage only as a framework for Rin chen’s enquiry concerning the law of birth and death. Thus, in our History, there is almost nothing left of the content of the doctrinal discourses of the teachers as they are developed in the Ga avy ha- s tra; these discourses have but a secondary importance and are only versified skeletal extracts from the Ga avy has tra. If the author of the History chose the Ga avy has tra, it was, however, not merely out of interest in the plot of Sudhana’s pilgrimage, which was so well suited to the History. In fact, the most important element of the Ga avy has tra that subsists in our History from Dunhuang is without doubt the notion of ‘means’ (up ya, thabs), which is brought out as we have noted in the passage cited above; in order to convert beings to Buddhism, the bodhisattva employs a wide variety of means. During his pilgrimage, Sudhana encounters many teachers who are quite different from one other. But, in spite of the differences of doctrinal discourse, they are all ‘benevolent guides’ (kaly amitra), who allow Sudhana to advance in the steps of his career as a bodhisattva; and it is this that is essential. The notion of ‘means’ (up ya, thabs), so clearly expressed in the Ga avy has tra, probably gave the author of our History a certain amount of freedom and allowed him to use and even modify the canonical texts to achieve his objective, which was to convert the Tibetans to Buddhism. Now let us take a look at other modifications that the author of the History has brought to the Ga avy has tra. To account for them, we have drawn up lists of the teachers whom Rin chen of our History (A) and Sudhana (Nor bzangs) of the Ga avy has tra (B) respect- ively visit.
128 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
List A
NAME TITLE DWELLING PLACE 1) ’Phrul chen Du ta ra lha — 2) Khams gsum ’phrul pa lha’i rje yul Mi mo mchog/ri Mgul legs pa 3) Sa ’og lha ’dre rje lha ’dre’i rje ljongs Rgya mtsho’i sgo 4) Bar snang dbang chen — Lang ka gnas kyi mtsho ’gram 5) Sprin chen rgyal po — grong khyer Rdo rje 6) Btang brjod tshong dpon yul Nags tshal gnas pa 7) Yid bzhin dge bsnyen ma — 8) ’Jigs mchog dbyangs drang srong yul Chu bo gtsang ma 9) Rgyal drod skye mched bram ze yul Yongs su tshol ba 10) Byams ma bu mo Seng ge rnam par bgyings pa 11) Blta na sdug pa dge slong Mig gsum 12) Dbang chen rgyal po khye’u grong khyer Sgo rab 13) Rin chen mang ba dge bsnyen ma grong khyer Rgya mtshor gnas pa 14) Mkhas mchog khyim bdag Rmad du byung ba 15) Rin chen gtsug phud tshong dpon grong khyer Seng ge gzhon nu 16) Kun tu mig tshong dpon yul Rtswa’i rtsa ba/grong khyer Kun tu sgo 17) Me rgyal po grong khyer Ta la’i rgyal mtshan 18) ’Od chen rgyal po grong khyer Shin tu snang ba 19) Mi g.yo ba dge bsnyen ma Rgyal po brtan pa’i pho brang 20) Kun tu ’gro ba tshang pa grong khyer Tshad yongs su ’dzin pa/ ri Shin tu rnyed pa 21) Utpala tshong dpon Rgyal srid Yangs pa 22) Rnam par snang byed sgrol ba grong khyer Khang bu brtsegs pa 23) Rgyal mchog tshong dpon grong khyer Dga’ ba’i phreng ba 24) Seng ge mthu dge slong ma Dga’ ba’i ’byung ba’i nags tshal chen po 25) Khri pa khyim bdag grong khyer Dge ba mthar phyin 26) Rgya mtsho’i rgyal dge slong Rgyas par ’gengs pa mtshan 27) Sh kya thub pa sangs rgyas yul Dbus ’gyur
List B
NAME TITLE DWELLING PLACE 1) ’Jam dpal gzhon nur byang chub sem dpa’ grong rdal chen po Skyid gyur pa pa’i ’byung gnas 2) Sprin gyi dpal dge slong yul Mi mo gya nom mchog/ri Mgul legs pa 3) Rgya mtsho’i sprin dge slong ljongs Rgya mtsho’i sgo 4) Shin tu brtan pa dge slong Lang ka’i gnas Rgya mtsho’i ngogs 5) Dra byi la’i sprin dra byi la Dra byi la’i grong rdal rdo rje’i grong rdal 6) Btang brjod tshong dpon yul Nags tshal na gnas pa
THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 129
7) Rgya mtsho’i rgyal dge slong ’Jam bu gling gi mgo ’gebs pas mtshan rgyas par ’gengs pa 8) Yid bzhin dge bsnyen ma grong khyer ’Od chen po 9) ’Jig mchog dbyangs drang srong yul Chu bo gtsang ma 10) Rgyal po’i drod kyi bram ze yul Yongs su tshol skye mched 11) Byams ma rgyal po grong khyer Seng ge rnam par bsgyings pa 12) Blta na sdug pa dge slong yul Mig gsum pa 13) Dbang po dbang phyug khye’u grong khyer Sgo bzang po [pa 14) Phul du byung ba dge bsnyen ma grong khyer Rgya mtsho brtan 15) Mkhas pa khyim bdag grong khyer ’Byung ba chen po 16) Rin chen gtsug phud tshong dpon grong khyer Seng ge’i gzugs 17) Kun tu lta ba tshong dpon yul Spa’i rtsa ba, grong khyer Kun nas sgo 18) Me rgyal po grong khyer Ta la’i rgyal mtshan 19) ’Od chen po rgyal po grong khyer ’Od bzang po 20) Mi g.yo ba dge bsnyen ma rgyal po’i pho brang Brtan pa 21) Thams cad du ’gro ba kun tu rgyu yul Dga’ ’dzin tshad med pa/grong khyer Dga’ ’dzin pa/ri Shin tu pad mo 22) Longs spyod Utpala tshong dpon yul Khams chen po 23) Dpa’o mnyan pa grong khyer Khang pa brtsegs pa 24) Rgyal ba dam pa tshong dpon grong khyer Dga’ ba’i phreng ba 25) Seng ge rnam par dge slong ma grong khyer Ka ling ga’i nags bsgyings pa tshal 26) Lha’i bshes gnyen ma bcom pa ma yul Bgrod dka’ ba/grong khyer Rin po che rgyan 27) Nan khugs khyim bdag grong khyer Dge ba’i pha rol tu phyin pa 28) Spyan ras gzigs dbang byang chub sem dpa’ ri Potala phyug
Let us examine these two lists of the teachers with care: Mañju r (’Jam dpal gzhon nur gyur pa), the first teacher who Sudhana visits in the Ga avy has tra is, as we have seen earlier, replaced by ’Phrul chen Dutara in our History. As for the following three teachers, while their dwelling places remain the same in the two versions, their names have changed completely. This change deserves closer investigation. The expression khams gsum, which is in the name of the teacher Khams gsum ’phrul pa lha’i rje ‘Lord of the gods who has magic power in the three worlds’, is usually indicative of a Buddhist con- text, and this is indeed the case in the Ga avy has tra. The three worlds of the well-known Buddhist cosmology are the K madh tu, comprising the three evil destinies (durgati) and the four continents on the earth and the first six stories of the gods, the R padh tu in 130 YOSHIRO IMAEDA space and the r pyadh tu on top of it. However, because of the expressions sa ’og in Sa ’og lha ’dre rje ‘Lord of the underground diabolical deities’, and bar snang in Bar snang dbang chen ‘Great powerful one of the intermediate world’ that follow, it seems more likely that khams gsum in our History refers to a tripartite division of the universe as the ether, the earth including the underworld, and the intermediate realm (= the atmosphere). Since ancient times, these are the three stages which constitute the Tibetan universe, which is vertically divided into three parts: the gods (lha) above, diabolical divinities like the klu below, and humans in the middle.32 In this way, following just the etymology of the names of these three teachers of the History, and not those of their dwelling places, which remain the same as in the Ga avy has tra, we adduce that Rin chen, leaving his divine country (situated without doubt in the upper sphere), goes first to the place of the Lord of the gods who has magic power in the three worlds and who also probably resides in the upper world. Then he descends to the lower world, to the place of the Lord of the underground diabolical deities, and finally arrives at the intermediate stage where the human beings dwell. This signifies for Tibetans that his pilgrimage covers the entire universe. After the dialogue with the first four teachers, Rin chen follows on the whole the same terrestrial itinerary—though much short- ened—as does Sudhana in the Ga avy has tra. The absence from list A of the teacher Lha’i bshes gnyen ma (26th in list B) may have been a mere oversight on the part of the author of our History, but the presence of the word lha ‘god’ in the name can also be considered as a reason for her omission from the History of Rin chen. For, as we have seen, starting with the fourth teacher, Bar snang dbang chen, they are all earthly teachers, with kyamuni as the last one whom Rin chen goes to see. It is probably the presence of the word lha ‘god’ in the name of Lha’i bshes gnyen ma (although the word is employed here to render the Sanskrit word vasu in the name Vasumitra of the Sanskrit original) which led the author of the History to exclude it. As for the change of order of Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan from seventh position in list B to 26th position, just before kyamuni, in list A, it can perhaps be explained by the fact that among the countries of the teachers of the Ga avy has tra, his is the only one which is specifically situated in Jambudv pa. The insertion of kyamuni of Magadha in Jambudv pa as the last of the teachers of
32 MACDONALD 1959: 419-20 and STEIN 1962: 22, 170. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 131 our History, in order to replace Avalokite vara (Spyan ras gzigs dbang phyug) in the Ga avy has tra, would have obliged the author of the History to place Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan, also from Jambudv pa, just before kyamuni, which makes the itinerary of Rin chen more logical from a geographical standpoint. It should be noted, however, that all the teachers of the Ga avy has tra in fact are in Jambudv pa. This must have been obvious for someone familiar with Indian Buddhist cosmology. The change of order of the teacher Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan in list A implies that the author of our History did not know Indian geography, and this is one of the grounds for the hypothesis which we will develop below, according to which the author was Tibetan. From what we have seen so far, we have here a fine adaptation of the pilgrimage of Sudhana in the Ga avy has tra, but with a fundamental difference between the two versions. In the Ga a- vy has tra, Sudhana’s visit to the various teachers is of paramount importance; each teacher contributes precious teachings concerning the practices of the bodhisattva, which is the main purpose of Sudhana’s quest. In our History, however, all of the teachers whom Rin chen visits, apart from kyamuni, despite their virtues, are incapable of answering the fundamental questions Rin chen asks about the law of birth and death. It is precisely their inability that is underlined over and over throughout the pilgrimage. After all, the pilgrimage of Rin chen, and therefore all of Chapter II, is only one element—quite interesting from a literary point of view but completely secondary in the end—in the organisation of our History. After Chapter II, in which the pilgrimage of Rin chen is narrated, what follows in the History is a description of kyamuni and of his country (Chapter III, 1), and the discourse on the inevitable nature of death (Chapter III, 2a). These are not taken from the Ga avy ha- s tra and are original compositions of the author. He tackles the fundamental question of death, about which Rin chen had asked at the beginning of the History. The author has the Buddha declare that all beings, even the gods, die (Chapter III, 2b). He condemns certain funeral rites (Chapter III, 2c) and in the end recommends, without pronouncing it, however, the formula of U avijay , as the remedy against death (Chapter III, 2d). It is likely that the author of the History is alluding here to pre-Buddhist religion, whose followers practised very elaborate funeral rituals in order to send the deceased to the land of the Dead, where they would live happily until their resurrection. In our History, the author declares these funeral rites to be useless and replaces them with rites centred on Buddhist formulæ. 132 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Some of the passages that we have just surveyed are extracts from Buddhist texts. For example, in Chapter III, 2b, kyamuni reveals the number of years allotted to the various categories of beings, from human beings to the Naivasa jñ -n sa jñ yatana gods who reside at the top of the r pyadh tu world. This theory of the lifespan of beings is not alien to Buddhist cosmology, as it is discussed thor- oughly in the Abhidharmako a,33 and we even know a s tra entitled yu paryantas tra (Tshe’i mtha’i mdo, P no. 973) 34 that deals exclusively with the subject. The list of our History is only an abbreviated and schematised version of this theory and even contains some errors (see below). As for the passage concerning the merits of the formula of U avijay recommended by kyamuni at the end of the History (Chapter III, 2d), it is in fact an abbreviated and reordered extract of the text which is found shortly before the end of the U avijay - dh ra (P no. 198, vol. 7, pp. 167-5 to 168-4).35 The aim of this canonical text is, as the epithet of one of its Tibetan versions (P no. 198), Sarvadurgatipari odhana, Ngan ’gro thams cad yongs su sbyong ba, indicates, to ‘purify all the bad destinies (durgati)’ in order to allow its followers to avoid them.36 As is clear from this epithet, this dh ra has the same objective as the Sarvadurgati- pari odhanatantra. From what we have seen until now, we can say that our author must have used the composition of the Sarvadurgatipari odhana-
33 LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome II: 171-74. 34 The passage that concerns us is found in P vol. 39: 62-3 to 64-2. 35 There are five different translations of this text in the current Kanjur: P nos. 197 to 201. As for the formula (dh ra ) itself, it is almost identical in all the versions. As far as the composition of the translations is concerned, we can divide them into two groups: 1) no. 198 in which the son of the Shin tu brtan pa (Suprati hita) gods and Indra appear, and 2) nos. 197, 200 and 201 in which they are absent. No. 199 is a sort of combination of the two groups; it belongs rather to group 2 but an episode involving Shin tu brtan pa that is found in no. 198 is inserted in the middle of it in a completely abrupt and illogical way. No. 198 is the only ancient translation (translated by Jinamitra, Surendrabodhi and Ye shes sde), and is therefore the only one that is present among the Dunhuang manuscripts—PT 6, 54, 74 and 368. The formula (dh ra ) itself is present in PT 72, 73, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, IOL Tib J 322 (not in the Tibetan transliteration of the Sanskrit dh ra , but in Tibetan translation), and 348 (?). The dh ra is also well represented among the Chinese Dunhuang manuscripts. Cf. FUJIEDA 1960. 36 The copyist of the PT 397, for example, copied the formula ‘in order to acquire merits, not to fall into the bad destinies (durgati), and to reach the dwelling of Amit bha’ (Inventaire, I: 99). THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 133 tantra, and that he has inserted into the History elements from other Buddhist texts and arranged them in an original way with some modifications. We have noted three instances of this: the pilgrimage of Rin chen, the theory of the lifespan of beings, and an extract from U avijay -dh ra . With regard to the first case, it is certain that the pilgrimage of Sudhana (Nor bzangs) in the Ga avy has tra served as the model. As for the second case, it is difficult to tell on which text the author of the History based his work, because the theory of the lifespan of beings is a part of Buddhist cosmology that is well attested in various Buddhist works. It is possible that further passages were inspired by, or contain quotations from other texts that we have not been able to identify. After this rapid overview of the History, we cannot help but notice with surprise that the formula of U avijay , which should be the culmination of the text, is absent. Is this absence simply due to forgetfulness on the part of Chos dbyangs, the copyist of PT 218? We will come back to this question later. First, however, we shall present a complete translation of the Skye shi’i lo rgyus and will indicate the relationship between our History and other texts from Dunhuang before proposing a definitive hypothesis concerning the authorship and the date of the text.
TRANSLATION
History of the Cycle of Birth and Death
(In the following pages, the peculiar and aberrant forms of Tibetan spelling in the Dunhuang manuscripts are not indicated except in cases in which it seems necessary for the interpretation of the text. This principle is equally followed with regard to the differences between copies.)
Chapter I37 1. Formerly all the gods possessed of body (gzugs yod lha)38 hoped that their life would be eternal: for innumerable æons they had
37 Given the importance of this chapter, which determines the rest of the History and the considerable variants among the manuscripts of this chapter, we have drawn up the collated transcription at the end of the study. On the other hand, the whole Chapter I has been translated by KAPSTEIN (2000: 5-6). We do not, however, agree with his interpretations in all details. 134 YOSHIRO IMAEDA never seen the law of birth and death (skye shi’i chos) because they had a long life of numerous years. The Lord of this world (de’i khams rje) was called ’Od ’bar rgyal, ‘King of Blazing Light’. The dwelling place that he occupied …39 was made solely of light and shone dazzlingly bright. Everything above and below it was reflected in it as in a mirror. Both the sun and the moon decorated the ‘hole of the stars’ (skar khung).40 The feeling of well being and comfort given by this country was beyond description. Food and treasures appeared whenever one wished. Everything there was made of magical materials. The light emanating from the body [of ’Od ’bar rgyal] blazed like gold. His thousand sons, ten thousand parents and all his retinue had the same magical power (’phrul stobs)41 as he. Everybody hoped to remain thus forever (rtag du).42 2. One day the life of ’Od ’bar rgyal was exhausted and the moment of the fall arrived for him. His magical power (’phrul stobs), his indescribable virtues (yon tan) and the beautiful blazing light of his body disappeared (yal). He stopped speaking, moving or breathing.43 Everyone found it extraordinary and asked each other what was the fault and what was the law. Nobody knew the meaning of the law (chos don). His thousand sons, ten thousand parents and all his retinue were plunged into an ocean of suffering and, beating their bodies, showed the signs of the most profound sadness. They wished that the king would return [to life] and be as he was before (slar ’ong sngon bzhin yod du re). 3. There was among the gods a god named Dutara who was quite old and who had great magical power (’phrul chen). He came to the residence of ’Od ’bar rgyal and declared, ‘You are in error. You are infected by ignorance. Everything that exists in this world
38 This category of gods is unknown to us. However, it is highly probable that the tripartite Buddhist cosmology—the K madh tu (’dod pa’i khams), the R pa- dh tu (gzugs kyi khams) and the r pyadh tu (gzugs med pa’i khams)—is applied here by the author to the deities residing at these respective dh tu (khams). In this case, these deities would be those residing in the R padh tu (gzugs kyi khams). 39 As the last half of text is missing here, the translation is uncertain. It is a pity, because it seems that it is a question of ’Od ’bar rgyal’s own dwelling-place. 40 An opening in the roof for light, smoke and passage. For details, see Stein 1957: 54-55. 41 For the meaning of the word ’phrul in the religious system of Ancient Tibet, see MACDONALD 1971: 337-38. 42 I. O. vol. 69, fol. 17, frag. 1, l. 7 and PT 366, fol. 1. 43 We have followed the version of IOL Tib J 345: smra zhing ’gul lbugs kun myi mkhyen. We have changed, however, lbugs, which is not found in our dictionaries, to dbugs, ‘breathe, breath’. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 135
(khams), when seventy thousand44 aeons have passed, will become like him. Know that this is the law of birth and death. I do not know, however, how to remedy (phan)45 it. There is no remedy.’46 When Dutara had spoken thus, the excellent son of ’Od ’bar rgyal, named Rin chen, having listened with great respect and thought, respectfully asked this great expert of magical power (’phrul chen), ‘I find that your words are the supreme truth.47 When the moment [of the accomplishment of the law] of birth and death arrives, what must one do so that [the deceased] will return [to life],48 and so that it will be possible to encounter him?49 What must one do so that [the deceased] will be at peace (bde) and happy (skyid pa) [in the other world]?’ Dutara replied, ‘Although I know that birth and death exist, I do not know what to do to remedy (phan) the fact. If you wish to ask what is the doctrine (chos tshul) of birth and death, good man, [go] there.50 There is the Lord of the gods who has magical power in the three worlds (khams gsum ’phrul pa lha’i rje), a btsun pa51 endowed with great magical power. Question him, reflect and understand!’ Dutara expressed his idea in these terms, in a persuasive way. Then Rin chen, son of the gods, out of respect for his father, and thinking of his sufferings (mya ngan),52 and fearing that he might not arrive at the place of happiness and peace (bde skyid gnas),53 aspired to look for and understand the meaning of the law of birth and death. Thus with a retinue of various experts in magical power (’phrul mkhas), … [he departed] without [the slightest idea of] coming back, and without looking back.54
44 One finds this number in the ancient religion where it designates the number of years of the stay in the country of the Death (gshin yul). See MACDONALD 1971: 366, n. 591. 45 Refer to p. 121 above. 46 PT 367. 47 PT 367. 48 PT 218 and 367. 49 PT 218 and 220. 50 This entire phrase is found only in PT 367. 51 This term, which translates in Buddhist terminology the Sanskrit bhadanta ‘venerable’ (Mvp, nos. 8702, 9220), must refer to a notion that we have not yet been able to determine precisely in the pre-Buddhist religious system. 52 The translation of this passage is uncertain. 53 Refer to p. 121 above. 54 As the last two verses are almost illegible, the translation is hypothetical. 136 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Chapter II55 (2) (folio kha, verso) Rin chen arrived in the country named Myi mo mchog, the ‘Best of women’, the dwelling place of the Lord of the gods who has magical power in the three worlds.56 The Lord dwelt in a place rich in medicinal plants at the top of the mountain called Mgul legs, the ‘Good throat’. Rin chen prostrated himself at the feet of the Lord, walked around him and joined his hands to say, ‘O Saint (’phags pa), deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, Lord of the gods, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The Lord of the gods replied, ‘Good man, what do you want to ask me? I, Lord of the gods who has magical power in the three worlds, have obtained “the intelligence of the eyes” through the power of veneration. By the power of the formula (dh ra ) that encompasses the clouds of teaching, looking into the ten directions, I see the Tath gatas, their varied forms and colours, (folio ga, recto) their inconceivable magical emanations (rnam par ’phrul pa), their lights radiating in all directions and many other inconceivable virtues. Having seen all that, I can explain to the beings the magical powers [of the Tath gatas]. These are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred [from this world to the other], and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy (bde zhing skyid pa)?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The Lord of the gods who has magical power in the three worlds replied, ‘I do not understand this doctrine (chos tshul). This is the
55 The whole of chapter II is, as we have seen above, merely an extremely shortened adaptation of the pilgrimage of Sudhana (Nor bzangs) in the Ga avy ha- s tra. As a result, the translation is extremely difficult, if not impossible, without referring to the original text of the Ga avy has tra. We have therefore compared the two texts in order to translate it here. The significant modifications that the auth- or of the History has made are discussed above (pp. 124-37). We do not point out each and every minor difference between the two texts, nor do we go into the details of the doctrines presented by each teacher. These details are much abbreviated, fragmented extracts of the original and as such they no longer present any essential interest and play only a secondary role in our History. 56 About the name of this teacher together with those of the following two teachers, Sa ’og lha ’dre rje ‘Lord of the underground diabolical deities’ and Bar snang dbang chen ‘Great powerful one of the intermediate world’, see above p. 133. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 137 law (chos) of birth and death. The history (lo rgyus) of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Good man, go there. There, in the country called Rgya mtsho’i sgo “Door of the Ocean” (folio ga, verso) dwells the Lord of the underground diabolical deities (sa ’og lha ’dre rje). Ask him the law of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully in front of the teacher, and set out with his retinue in search of the law (chos tshul) of birth and death to encounter the Lord of the underground diabolical deities; divine tiara (cod pan) [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.57
(3) Then, after crossing many countries (yul khams), Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country named Rgya mtsho’i sgo, the ‘Door of the Ocean’. Having prostrated himself, touching with his head the feet of the Lord of the underground diabolical deities, and walked around him, he joined his hands to say, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, btsun pa, to instruct me.’ (folio nga, recto) He thus beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The Lord of the underground diabolical deities replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? When I was submerged, here in the country named Rgya mtsho’i sgo, in concentration (sam dhi), meditating on all the virtues of the ocean, I saw appear in its centre a precious, well-planted lotus with various ornaments that was supported by numerous lords.58 It was raining flowers of a divine nature. On the magnificent lotus was sitting the Tath gata. His [eighty] signs (anuvyañja) and [thirty-two] characteristics (lak a a) were inconceivable, his virtues and his magical power indescribable. Then, extending his hand, the Tath gata touched me and revealed a teaching called the Universal Eye, which explained the obligations of the bodhisattva.59 Therefore, I have obtained the formula (dh ra ) of deliverance. (folio nga, verso) Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do
57 Refer to n. 19 above. 58 See DE JONG 1985: 11. 59 See DE JONG 1985: 12. 138 YOSHIRO IMAEDA so that he will return [to life], so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The Lord of the underground diabolical deities replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Good man, go there. There in the country named Mtsho ’gram, “Shore of the ocean”, on the way to La k dwells Bar snang dbang chen “Great powerful one in the intermediate world”. Ask him about the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter Bar snang dbang chen; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(4) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived at the country Mtsho ’gram, ‘Shore of the ocean’ on the way to La k , and (folio ca, recto) encountered Bar snang dbang chen, ‘Great powerful one in the intermediate world’. Having prostrated himself and joined his hands, he said, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, btsun pa, to instruct me.’ He beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. Bar snang dbang chen replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Bar snang dbang chen, have found the door without obstacle that leads to the deliverance of the bodhisattva. Therefore, I can go freely with my body to all the countries of the Buddhas in the ten directions. By the blessing of “without reality” (dngos med, avastuka), I can fly in the sky, penetrate the earth, and there is no danger of my drowning in the river. I am capable of making clouds appear imitating all living creatures. I have listened to all the correct teachings (yang dag chos tshul) preached by the Buddhas of the ten directions. (folio ca, verso). As I have the abilities, any living creature that sees me is certain to obtain bodhi. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 139
Bar snang dbang chen replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and question Sprin chen rgyal po “King of the great clouds”.’ Rin chen, son of the gods, having listened to these instructions, prostrated himself respectfully. He then set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death (folio cha, recto) to encounter Sprin chen rgyal po; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(5) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in Rdo rje grong khyer, ‘Town of diamond’. Sprin chen rgyal po, ‘King of the great clouds’, sitting on the throne, was preaching the Law to numerous beings. Rin chen, having seen him, prostrated himself, touching his forehead to the feet of Sprin chen rgyal po … He said, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. [I am plunged in] an ocean of [indescribable] suffering. [I beg you to] instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. Sprin chen rgyal po replied, ‘Good man, [what do you want to ask me?] I have obtained the formula of Sarasvat . The light comes out of my mouth. …. All the beings who see this mass of light or who are touched by it (folio cha, verso) gather around me. I have explained to them the ornament of the wheel of the Scripture (yi ge’i ’khor lo’i rgyan)60 in such a way that they know and understand it. I have done this so that they do not turn away from the supreme Awakening. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. Sprin chen rgyal po replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. [The history of birth and death is] very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. [Question] Btang brjod, “One who speaks of liberation”,61 head of the merchants.’
60 We do not exactly understand what this expression means. 61 The name of this teacher in the Ga avy has tra is Mukta, ‘Liberation’. The Tibetan version gives him the name Btang brjod, for which I owe the interpretation given here to M. Kapstein. 140 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Rin chen, son of the gods, having listened to these instructions, prostrated himself respectfully. He then set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter Btang brjod, head of the merchants; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(6) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, (folio ja, recto) arrived in the country Nags tshal gnas pa, ‘Forest dwelling’. Having seen Btang brjod, head of the merchants, he prostrated himself respectfully at his feet and joined his hands to say, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. [I am plunged in] an ocean of [indescribable] suffering.’ [Btang brjod, head of the merchants] made appear on his body the Buddha Bhagavat of the ten directions in a number equal to the specks of dust in the ten countries [of the Buddhas] in the ten [directions], together with their teachings and qualities, the different vehicles (theg pa), and the emanations (sprul pa) of Buddha showing the various ways of behaviour. He came out of his meditation (sam dhi) and said to Rin chen, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? With my knowledge of the Ornament without obstacle, I have also seen the Buddhas of the ten directions. (folio ja, verso) They do not arrive here nor does my body equally go [there]. The manifestations of the Tath gatas are like dreams and shadows, and like material made with magic. Their voices are also like an echoes and resonance. I know that the manifestation of my own spirit is also like a dream, a reflection of the moon on the water, an illusion and an echo. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ (folio nya, recto) Then Rin chen spoke thus: ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The head of the merchants replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask [the up sik (dge bsnyen ma), the lay woman who has taken five vows,] Yid bzhin “According to wish” the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, [Rin chen prostrated himself] respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 141 doctrine [of birth and death] to encounter the up sik Yid bzhin; (folio nya, verso) divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(7) [Then, after crossing] many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived [in the country where dwelt Yid bzhin, ‘According to wish’]. This well-adorned country was surrounded everywhere by trees, trees of jewels, fruit trees, … and by walls. In the centre was the palace decorated with jewels. Yid bzhin [was there…] All the gods of the upper sphere (mthos ris, svarga), humans, [beings of the world of] Yama and animals were gathered there coming from the ten directions… Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of the up sik and walked around her to say, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, up sik , to instruct me.’ He beseeched her with numerous pleasant words. The up sik replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? (folio ta, recto) I, up sik Yid bzhin, have obtained the deliverance (named) “the banner of happiness without suffering”. Seeing me or hearing me is beneficial. Likewise all the actions [of those who do] are beneficial. All the beings who see me obtain without fail the supreme bodhi. The Tath gatas came from the ten directions to sit on this throne. I have listened to all the teachings. Ceaselessly I see the Tath gatas and I listen to their teachings. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called [’Od ’bar rgyal]. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus [asked Rin chen]. The up sik replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. [I do not understand] the doctrine of it. Go there, [good man, and ask] in the country of Chu bab gtsang ba, “Pure river”, the ascetic ( i, drang srong) ’Jigs mchog dbyangs “Supremely terrifying melody”…’ (folio ta, verso). Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death, to encounter ’Jigs mchog dbangs; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
142 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
(8) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country Chu bab gtsang ba, ‘Pure river’. There, various forests of jewels shone and were decorated with varied flowers and fruits. In the centre of these various forests was the ascetic ’Jigs mchog dbyangs ‘Supremely terrifying melody’. His hair was plaited and he wore the tiara, his upper clothes were made of herbs and skin, and his lower garments of bark. He was sitting on a cushion made of herbs and was surrounded by ten thousand ascetics. Rin chen bowed, prostrated himself (folio tha, recto) and walked around him to ask him with joined hands, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, ascetic, to instruct me.’ He beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. ’Jigs mchog dbyangs reached out and touched the head of Rin chen. At this moment, Rin chen, son of the gods, had the following vision: He was with all the Tath gatas of the countries of the Buddhas in the ten directions, and was blessed… He saw all the virtues of the Jina. The ascetic ’Jigs mchog dbyangs, having removed his hand, [said to Rin chen], ‘Do you remember [what you have seen]?’ Rin chen replied, ‘Yes, thanks to the blessing of the holy teacher that you are.’ (folio tha, verso) … ’Jigs mchog dbangs continued, ‘Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. ’Jigs mchog dbangs replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask the brahman (bram ze) Rgyal drod skye mched, “Source of victorious heat”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death, to encounter the brahman Rgyal drod skye mched; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 143
(9) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, (folio da, recto) arrived in the country named Yongs su tshol ba, ‘Sought for everywhere’. There, the brahman Rgyal drod skye mched ‘Source of victorious heat’ was practising strict asceticism in order to attain omniscience. He saw that on each of the four sides, a mass of fire as big as the mountain was burning, and that he was completely surrounded by a high mountain that looked like the edge of a sword. Rin chen, having seen the brahman, prostrated himself at his feet and said with his hands joined, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. [I am plunged in] an ocean of [indescribable] suffering. I beg you, [brahman,] to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The brahman replied. ‘[What do you want to ask me, good man?] I, [Rgyal drod] skye mched, by the virtue and the blessing of rigor- ous asceticism … gather everybody in front of me. [When I practise asceticism,] in all the countries of serpents, (n ga, klu), musicians of genius (gandharva, dri za), (folio da, verso) titans (asura, lha ma yin), “birds of prey” (garu a, nam mkha’ lding), sirens (ki nara, mi ’am ci) and sons of the gods of the K madh tu, the cymbals resound, the earth quakes and the magical light that even illuminates Hell (dmyal ba) appears. The sufferings of all are appeased. Thanks to this light, I am also seen. I tame all those that come here. All the erroneous views of each are transformed. I convert them all by preaching the Law according to their personal capacity and lead them to bodhi. All the sentient beings who touch this mountain of fire obtain the concentration, peace, tranquillity and the supernatural capacity (mngon shes) of a bodhisattva. Such are my personal virtues. I have obtained only the bodhisattva’s deliverance called “the inexhaustible ma ala”.62 What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The brahman replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death (folio na, recto) is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and question
62 The qualification of this deliverance is unknown. 144 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Byams ma “Compassionate one”, daughter of King Seng ge dpal, “Glorious lion”.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully, and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the daughter Byams ma; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(10) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country called Seng ge rnam par bsgyings pa, ‘Outstretched Lion’. There, the dwelling of King Seng ge dpal, ‘Glorious lion’, was splendid, decorated with all sorts of jewels. His daughter, Byams ma, ‘Compassionate one’, was sitting on a sandalwood throne, surrounded by five hundred servants … Her body was shining brightly. Rin chen prostrated himself, touching with his head the feet of Byams ma, and walked around her … [saying], ‘O, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. (folio na, verso) [I am plunged in] an ocean of [indescribable] suffering. [I beg you to] instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched her with numerous pleasant words. Then Byams ma showed … On each of these bases, there were Tath gatas of the sphere of the Law who had produced for the first time the thought of the Awakening, those who were practising conduct, those who were showing the miracle of the supreme Awakening, those who were turning the wheel of the Law and those who were entering into complete nirv a. She showed them all in the manner of reflection, like the reflection of the sun, the moon and the stars in a clear lake. After having shown such qualities, she pronounced the following words: ‘I, daughter Byams ma, know the chapter of the word of the Prajñ p ramit entitled “Universal ornament”. He who practises this doctrine obtains the dh ra of the universal door. In the teaching of this dh ra all the doctrines are united. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ (folio pa, recto) Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him, and what must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The daughter Byams ma replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask the monk (bhik u, dge THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 145 slong) Blta na sdug pa, “Beautiful to look at”, the doctrine of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(11) Then, [after crossing many countries,] Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country named Mig gsum, ‘Three eyes’. In the middle of various forests dwelled the monk Blta na sdug pa, ‘Beautiful to look at’, decorated …, endowed with excellent virtues [obtained by means of] practices, surrounded by different beings. (folio pa, verso) … ‘In order to produce knowledge among the groups of different beings, … in remembering the method of the Tath gatas, all the beings … I walk.’ Each step was supported by a lotus of divine jewels. Rin chen prostrated himself, touching with his head the feet of the monk Blta na sdug pa, and joined his hands and said, ‘O Saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, monk, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The monk replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, the monk Blta na sdug pa, have practised in a single life the religious behaviour with Tath gatas as numerous as the sands of the thirty- eight Ganges. I have listened to their words. I have received their instructions and their teachings. I have purified my previous vows. (folio pha, recto) I entered in the field of the achievement. I have purified the circle of conduct. I have completely achieved the [six] perfections (p ramit ),63 and I have also learned the miracle [of the Supreme Awakening]. Further, my practices are infinite. When I walk on this promenade, at each production of thought, the practice of the bodhisattva is manifest. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen.
63 They are 1) perfect gift (d na, sbyin pa), 2) perfect conduct ( la, tshul khrim), 3) perfect patience (k nti, bzod pa), 4) perfect zeal (v rya, brtson ’grus), 5) perfect meditation (dhy na, bsam gtan) and 6) perfect wisdom (prajñ , shes rab). 146 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Blta na sdug pa replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask the boy without equal, Dbang chen rgyal po, “King of great power”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully, and set out with his retinue to encounter the excellent boy (khye’u mchog), Dbang chen rgyal po; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(12) (folio pha, verso) Then, [after crossing many countries,] Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived at the town of Sgo rab, ‘Excellent door’. There, the excellent boy Dbang chen rgyal po, ‘King of great power’, was on the shore of a river with fresh water… He was surrounded with ten thousand young and excellent boys. Rin chen prostrated himself by touching his head to the feet of the boy without equal, Dbang chen rgyal po, and joined his hands to say, ‘Deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, Dbang chen rgyal po, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The boy without equal replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Dbang chen rgyal po, have learnt from ryamañju r kum ra different sciences of this world.64 I know who will be reborn in the superior sphere (mtho ris, svarga) and in the erroneous destinies (log ’gro = ? ngan ’gro, durgati); I can disting- uish those who practise the law of good actions from those who practise the law of bad actions. (folio ba, recto) I have also obtained luminous knowledge. Based on these, I liberate numerous beings. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen replied, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred, and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him, and what must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The boy without equal replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. There at the town of Rgya
64 Cf. n. 27. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 147 mtshor gnas pa “Dwelling on the ocean” lives the up sik (dge bsnyen ma) Rin chen mang ba, “([one who possesses] many jewels”, who practises the discipline. Question her.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully, and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the up sik Rin chen mang ba; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(13) Then, (folio ba, verso) after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the holy town of Rgya mtshor gnas pa, ‘Dwelling on the ocean’. There was a house made of jewels, with beams of gold decorated with turquoise and covered with a net of jewels. In its centre on a high and immaculate chair was sitting the up sik Rin chen mang ba, ‘[who possesses] numerous jewels’. She was young and beautiful, her hair was undone(?); she wore no ornaments and was clad in white. Ten thousand divine servants surrounded her. Rin chen, son of the gods, having seen her, prostrated himself respectfully, and joined his hands to say, ‘Deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, up sik , to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched her with numerous pleasant words. The up sik replied, ‘What do you want to ask me? I, Rin chen mang ba, have obtained the bodhisattva’s liberation called the Orna- ment of inexhaustible treasure and merits. (folio ma, recto) My body gives off an excellent perfume. The beings who breathe this perfume are purified from the stain of the three poisons65 and are established in the three doors of liberation.66 Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen.
65 They are ‘ignorance’ (moha, gti mug), ‘concupiscence’ (r ga, ’dod chags) and ‘hatred’ (dve a, zhe sdang). 66 This phrase of our History is not found in the Ga avy has tra. Is this because the version that our author used was different from the one currently in the Kanjur? Or did our author incorporate a passage here from somewhere else? As we have found in the Ga avy has tra passages corresponding to the rest of chapter II, except for this passage, we are inclined to adopt the second hypothesis. 148 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
The up sik replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I don’t understand its doctrine. Go there, good man, and ask the master of the house (khyim bdag, g hapati) Mkhas mchog, “Excellent expert”.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the master of house Mkhas mchog; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(14) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, (folio ma, verso) arrived in the town of Rmad du byung ba ‘Miraculously appeared’. At a crossroads under the shade of trees of jewels, magical flowers were raining, a net of jewels was spread like a canopy, and everything was decorated with banners, standards and divine ornaments. There, on a throne of jewels, sat the master of the house Mkhas mchog, ‘Excellent expert’, surrounded by numerous persons. Rin chen, son of the gods, having seen him, prostrated himself at his feet and joined his hands to say, ‘O Expert (mkhas pa), deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, master of the house, to instruct me. Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The master of the house replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, master of the house Mkhas mchog, have found the treasure (gter) of all the merits, which fulfils the wish (yid bzhin mdzod). I can therefore furnish all kinds of objects according to the desire of each being. It is like the rain that falls from the sky. (folio tsa, recto) I also create pleasure and satisfy everybody. Although I preach [in different ways] in accordance with [the capacity of understanding of] each in order to liberate him by appropriate means (thabs, up ya), it is to make all the beings enter into the Great vehicle (theg pa chen po, mah y na), which is the unique teaching. I sow also the grains and the shoots of good. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The master of the house replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 149 the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and in the town of Seng ge gzhon nu, “Young lion”, question the head of the merchants Rin chen gtsug phud, “Tuft of jewelled hair”, about the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter Rin chen gtsug phud; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(15) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the town of Seng ge gzhon nu, ‘Young lion’. There he saw in the centre of an assembly the head of the merchants Rin chen gtsug phud, ‘Tuft of jewelled hair’, chief without equal who practises the Law. (folio tsa, verso) Having prostrated himself at the feet of the head of the merchants, he joined his hands and said, ‘Deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, head of the merchants, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. Rin chen gtsug phud entered his proper seven-storey residence made of jewels in which all needs are fulfilled as wished. Having shown it to Rin chen, son of the gods, Rin chen gtsug phud said, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Rin chen gtsug phud, made, countless æons ago, abundant offerings to the Tath gatas and to their entourage. I have transferred (bsngos) the root of this good for the following three aims: 1) that all beings be rid of pains and sufferings (nyon mongs sdug bsngal), 2) that all beings follow the holy teaching and 3) that all beings make offerings to the Tath gatas. I have made a great prayer and the transfer has been realised. (folio tsha, recto) Many beings therefore benefit from this transfer. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. Rin chen gtsug phud replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. There in the town of Kun tu sgo, “Door [which opens] everywhere”, ask to the chief of merchants of 150 YOSHIRO IMAEDA incense Kun tu mig, “Eye [which sees] everywhere”, the doctrine of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the head of the merchants of incense; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(16) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country Rtswa’i rtsa ba ‘Root of the herb’. There, [in the centre of] (folio tsha, verso) ten thousand towns, was the town of Kun tu sgo, ‘Door [which opens] everywhere’. Rin chen found there the head of the merchants of incense, who was handling all kinds of incense. Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of the head of the merchants of incense and joined his hands to say, ‘O Kun tu mig, “Eye [which sees] everywhere”, head of the merchants of incense, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, head of the merchants of incense, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The head of the merchants replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Kun tu mig, head of the merchants, make abundant offerings of perfumed objects to the Tath gata and I make all the beings rejoice. Having found the incense without equal, the foundation of the law, I appease all the illnesses of beings. I eliminate all fears and I annihilate all obstacles. I thus protect all beings and show them the law of the “four immeasurables” (tshad med, apram a).67 (folio dza, recto) Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. Kun tu mig replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. There, in the town of Ta la’i rgyal mtshan,
67 These are: 1) immeasurable compassion (maitr , byams pa), 2) immeasurable pity (karu , snying rje), 3) immeasurable joy (mudit , dga7ba) and 4) im- measurable indifference (upek , btang snyoms). Refer to LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome V: 196-203. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 151
“Standard of the t la tree”, ask King Me, “Fire”, aboutthe doctrine of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter King Me; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(17) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the town of Ta la’i rgyal mtshan, ‘Standard of the t la tree’. There on the lion throne decorated on all sides was sitting King Me ‘Fire’, (folio dza, verso) possessed of [eighty] excellent marks and [thirty-two] characteristics. Ten thousand ministers sur- rounded him and were occupied with the affairs of the king. Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of the king and joined hands to say, ‘O king, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, king, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The king replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, king Me, I have obtained a bodhisattva’s liberation from illusion. As for the beings who are susceptible of becoming the field [of merits], I make them avoid the way of the ten evil actions,68 and follow that of the ten good actions.69 The virtues of this appropriate means are inconceivable and beings cease their suffering. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father (folio wa, recto) is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The king replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. There in the town Shin tu snang ba “Extreme light” dwells the king ’Od chen, “Great light”. Ask him the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search
68 They are 1) murder, 2) theft, 3) illicit love, 4) lying, 5) deceitful words, 6) insults, 7) frivolous words, 8) covetousness, 9) spitefulness, and 10) false opinion. See LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome III: 137 ff. 69 They consist in not committing the ten bad acts enumerated above. 152 YOSHIRO IMAEDA of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter King ’Od chen; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(18) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the town of Shin tu snang ba, ‘Extreme light’. It was surrounded on all four sides by a fence of diamonds, a wall of seven kinds of jewels, and a basement of gold. The spring was perfumed with sandalwood (folio wa, verso) and its bottom was composed of golden sand. The town was completely surrounded by forests of t la. There were also all kinds of flowers. Many charming birds were singing with pleasing voices. There was also a nice scent (?).70 In the centre in a house-sanctuary, King ’Od chen, ‘Great light’, was sitting on a throne made of a lotus of jewels. He had the thirty-two characteristics of a great man. [His body] was shining like the sun, and he was surrounded by his servants and possessed numerous objects. Upon seeing him, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of King ’Od chen by stretching the members of his body and joined his hands to say, ‘O king, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, king, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. King ’Od chen replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, king ’Od chen, (folio zha, recto) have heard of the bodhisattva’s conduct called “Excellent standard of kindness”. In order to bring an end to birth, the transmigration of numerous beings, of all, completely … in the sphere of the Law. To show the knowledge of omniscience, I tame everybody according to the Law. I have obtained the concentration called the revolution (?) of the organs of sense that are free of passions, suffering and birth, which is preceded by the great kindness and brings all desired objects. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. King ’Od chen replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand its doctrine. Go there, good man. There, in the palace of King Brtan pa,
70 Refer to DE JONG 1985: 19. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 153
“Firm”, ask the up sik (dge bsnyen ma) Mi g.yo ba, “Immovable”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, (folio zha, verso) Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully, and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the up sik ; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(19) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country of King Brtan pa, ‘Firm’. There was the up sik Mi g.yo ba, ‘Immovable’, who looked young, was very beautiful and observed the discipline. She was with her father and mother, and numerous members of her family and her entourage, and she was preaching the doctrine (chos kyi tshul) to them. Upon seeing her, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and joined his hands to say, ‘O up sik , deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, up sik , to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched her with numerous pleasant words. The up sik replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, up sik Mi g.yo ba, have formerly obtained from the Tath gata Pralambab hu (Phyag rab tu brkyang ba), (folio za, recto) the essence of invincible knowledge and ten thousand doors of con- centration. When I enter into concentration, the worlds in the ten directions quake, the light of the concentration appears everywhere and great magic (rdzu ’phrul) arises. I plant the root of good. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The up sik replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man. There in the town Tshad yod ’dzin pa,71 ask the tshangs pa72 Kun tu ’gro ba, “One who goes everywhere”.’
71 In the Ga avy has tra, the country and the town of this teacher are named respectively Dga’ ’dzin tshad med and Dga’ ba ’dzin pa (refer to p. 126 above). The copyist of our History must have merged these two names into one resulting in the curious name Tshad yod ’dzin pa. 72 See n. 21. 154 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the tshangs pa Kun tu ’gro ba; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li (folio za, verso) and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(20)73 Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, climbed the mountain named Shin tu rnyed pa, ‘Well found’. There he saw the tshangs pa Kun tu ’gro ba, ‘One who goes everywhere’. This one had an excellent colour and radiated light like the sun and the moon. His splendour and his virtues were blazing, and he was surrounded by a retinue of ten thousand tshangs pa. Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at the feet of Kun tu ’gro ba and joined his hands to say, ‘O tshangs pa, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, tshangs pa, to instruct me. Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. Kun tu ’gro ba replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Kun tu ’gro ba, have found the door of luminous knowledge (ye shes snang ba’i sgo). I instruct all beings by various appropriate means in accordance with the vocation of each one. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ (folio ’a, recto) Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. Kun tu ’gro ba replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask Utpala, the head of the merchants, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself and set out with his retinue in search of the law of birth and death to encounter Utpala, the head of the merchants; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
73 Cf. above pp. 124-26. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 155
(21) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the kingdom called Yangs pa ‘Stretched’. There, he saw Utpala, the head of the merchants, who was surrounded by many people. Rin chen prostrated himself at the feet of the head of the merchants and joined his hands to say, ‘Deign to look upon me with compassion. (folio ’a, verso) I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, head of the merchants, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The head of the merchants replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Utpala, the head of the merchants, have obtained the concentration “without dust”. By the falling rain of utpala flowers, beings obtain all sorts of good. The beings who breathe the perfume that comes out of them become free from pain and illness and they will not even be burnt by fire. Further, they will not be infected by poisons, will reject sin and will respect their vows (sdom pa). Everybody will have the pure spirit and will unfailingly obtain bodhi. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy? (folio ya, recto) Thus asked Rin chen. The head of the merchants replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand its doctrine. Go there, good man, and at the town of Khang bu brtsegs pa, “Pagoda” (K g ra), and ask the ferryman Rnam par snang ba, “Luminous one”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the ferryman Rnam par snang ba; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(22) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived at the shore of the ocean. He saw near the gate of the town the ferryman Rnam par snang ba, ‘Luminous one’, explaining the quality of the island of the ocean to several hundred thousand merchants and also to all sorts of people. (folio ya, verso) He saw those who were wishing for all kinds of jewels to be born (?) on the island of the ocean. Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself at 156 YOSHIRO IMAEDA the feet of the ferryman and joined his hands to say, ‘O ferryman, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, ferryman, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous peasant words. The ferryman replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Rnam par snang ba, have obtained the diamond level. I lead numerous beings to the island of the ocean, and I satisfy them with as many jewels as they want and I bring them back. Then I preach to them the doctrine (chos tshul), and I liberate them from transmigration in the three worlds (khams gsum ’khor ba). Drying the ocean of three poisons and that of the spirit (?), I lead beings into the ocean of knowledge. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, (folio ra, recto) ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The ferryman replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I don’t understand its doctrine. Go there, good man. There in the town of Dga’ ba’i phreng ba, “Rosary of joy”, lives the head of the merchants Rgyal mchog, “Excellent victorious”. Ask him the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the head of the merchants, Rgyal mchog; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(23) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the town of Dga’ ba’i phreng ba, ‘Rosary of joy’. There, he saw in the forest of a oka trees (folio ra, verso) the head of the merchants, Rgyal mchog, ‘Excellent victorious’, surrounded by a hundred thousand masters of the house. He was benefiting them by giving them teachings. Rin chen prostrated himself at the feet of the head of the merchants and joined his hands to say, ‘O Rgyal mchog, head of the merchants, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, Rgyal mchog, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 157
The head of the merchants replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Rgyal mchog, head of the merchants, have obtained the ability to go everywhere. I preach the law according to the manner of each and I stop the stream of the evil destinies (ngan song, durgati). Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father (folio la, recto) is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The head of the merchants replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and in the town of Dga’ ba ’byung ba’i nags tshal (chen po), “Great forest of the source of joy”, ask the nun (bhik u , dge slong ma) Seng ge mthu can, “Powerful lioness”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the history of birth and death to encounter the nun; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(24) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, (folio la, verso) arrived in the town of Dga7ba ’byung ba’i nags tshal chen po, ‘Great forest of the source of joy’. There, in the wall made of sunlight, were lakes, ponds and pools whose water possessed the eight virtues.74 They were encircled by an enclosure of seven jewels. There were blooming flowers of a divine nature, magical trees [which produced] fabrics, sandalwood and fruit trees. At the bottom of each jewel tree, a lion throne was placed. Rin chen, son of the gods, saw in the centre the nun Seng ge mthu can, ‘Powerful lioness’, surrounded by numerous beings. Rin chen prostrated himself at her feet and joined his hands to say, ‘Deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, holy nun, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched her with numerous pleasant words.
74 It is cold, clear, light, tasty, soft, not fetid, and does not harm either the throat or the stomach. Refer to LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome II: 144. 158 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
The nun replied, (folio sha, recto) ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Seng ge mthu can, have heard this thanks to the concentration that includes all the Laws. I preach the Law in accordance with the ability of the beings between the superior sphere (mtho ris) and the three evil destinies of transmigration. Thus having completely rejected the errors, all of them practise the obligations of a bodhisattva. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be in peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. Seng ge mthu can replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and in the town of Dge ba mthar phyin, “Perfection of good”, (folio sha, verso) question the master of the house Khri pa “Occupant of the throne”.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the master of the house, Khri pa; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(25) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the town of Dge ba mthar phyin ‘Perfection of good’. There, he saw the master of the house, Khri pa, ‘Occupant of the throne’, who was making abundant offerings at the st pa of the sandalwood throne. Rin chen prostrated himself at his feet and joined his hands to say, ‘O saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, master of the house, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. The master of the house replied, (folio sa, recto) ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, master of the house, Khri pa, have opened the door of the sandalwood throne of the st pa of the Tath - gata and I have obtained the concentration of the ornament of good eyes. I have seen innumerable Jina of the past, and known all of their virtues. I practise and I preach to others. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 159 so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The master of the house replied, ‘It is the law of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it. Go there, good man, and ask the monk (dge slong, bhik u) Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan, “Standard of the ocean”, the history of birth and death.’ Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen, son of the gods, prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the history of birth and death to encounter Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan; divine tiara [vibrating] (folio sa, verso) pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
(26) Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived in the country Rgyas par ’gengs pa, ‘Amply filled’, at the edge of the Jambudv pa continent. There, the monk Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan, ‘Standard of the ocean’, was immersed in con- centration, performing few acts and not moving. His emanations (rnam par ’phrul pa) were unimaginable: from all the hairs of his body appeared numerous emanations of the bodhisattva. By his supernatural power, he made beings mature at each moment. By making offerings to all the Buddhas, he purified all the countries. He completely removed the aggregate of the suffering of all beings and blocked all the evil destinies (ngan song lam). In the same way, he opened the way leading to happiness (bde lam). He appeased the suffering of beings, (folio ha, recto) and dispelled the obstacle of ignorance. From each member of his body appeared all kinds of beings, namely, merchants (vai ya) kings (k atriya), brahmans, ascetics ( i, drang srong), daughters of n gas (klu), titans (asura, lha ma yin), “Listeners” ( r vaka, nyan thos), “Buddhas-for-self” (pratyekabuddha, rang sangs rgyas), “malevolent genies” (yak a, gnod sbyin), “demoniac beings” (r k asa, srin po), “sirens” (ki nara, mi ’am ci), musicians of genius (gandharva, dri za), Universal Emperors (cakravartin, ’khor los sgyur ba’i rgyal po) …75… Mah brahma (tshangs pa chen po) and bodhisattvas and others with their own virtues and retinues. In the same way, he made
75 At this point our text reads zla ba mang po, ‘many months’, an expression that is not appropriate here. In fact, in the Ga avy has tra, we find this expression in a later passage (P 151-4-7), where it indicates the elevated number of emanations of the Buddha. 160 YOSHIRO IMAEDA a light come out of each hair, forming a circular net. Thus Rin chen saw all kinds of virtues of Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan. For six months and six days, Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan remained immersed in concentration, producing all these phenomena. When he came out of his concentration, Rin chen told him, ‘O saint, deign to look upon me with compassion. I came to ask you what I do not understand. I am plunged in an ocean of indescribable suffering. I beg you, btsun pa, to instruct me.’ Thus he beseeched him with numerous pleasant words. (folio ha, verso) The monk replied, ‘What do you want to ask me, good man? I, Rgya mtsho’i rgyal mtshan, as I have obtained the concentration of the ornament of purity, have no obstacle for the practices of this world, neither to enter into the different virtues of the Buddha nor to practise them. Such are my personal virtues. What do you want to ask me, good man?’ Rin chen continued, ‘My father is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will return [to life], and so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be at peace and happy?’ Thus asked Rin chen. The monk replied, ‘It is the doctrine of birth and death. The history of birth and death is very profound. I do not understand the doctrine of it.76 (folio kna, recto) Go there, good man. There in a country named Magadha lives the Buddha kyamuni, protector of the world. For countless æons, he has perfectly liberated the beings from birth and death.77 He has eradicated all the sufferings of the illnesses caused by the three poisons. He has taught the law of birth and death, contemplated the five destinies (gati),78 which are the realms resulting from acts (karma, las), shown the eight Hells, and [taught] the ten good actions that are the good remedy and the ten perfections (p ramit ).79 He has accomplished the good by mean of the four “immeasurables”, and taught by the nature of the four
76 Regarding the anomaly of the manuscript at this point, see above pp. 113-15. 77 skye zhing ’chi las yongs su bsgrol. In a rare passage concerning Buddhism in the Old Tibetan Chronicle, we find the same expression: skye shi las bsgral (= bsgrol) to (DTH: 114). This clearly indicates that the Tibetans were extremely receptive to this aspect of Buddhism. 78 For the number of destinies (gati), either five or six, see MUS 1939: 39. 79 They are, in addition to the six we have already seen (n. 63): 7) perfect means (up ya, thabs), 8) perfect vow (pranidh na, smon lam), 9) perfect power (bala, stobs) and 10) perfect knowledge (jñ na, ye shes). THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 161 meditations.80 In brief, his virtues are indescribable. The Buddha, protector of the world, is the doctor of illness, of birth and death, the saviour of the ocean of suffering, the torch that lights the darkness, the leader who instructs the ignorant people. As he knows the law of birth and death, ask him about this doctrine.’ (folio kna, verso) Having listened to these instructions, Rin chen prostrated himself respectfully and set out with his retinue in search of the doctrine of birth and death to encounter the Buddha, the Sugata, Bhagavat kyamuni; divine tiara [vibrating] pu ru ru, jewel cymbals [sounding] si li li and various harmonious drums [resounding] ti ri ri.
Chapter III 1. Then, after crossing many countries, Rin chen, son of the gods, arrived at Magadha. There, in front of the mah bodhi tree, the Buddha kyamuni was dwelling [by his supernatural ability] in the sky, at the height of seven t la trees. He was sitting on a throne of jewels, surrounded by many beautiful lights forming a rainbow. The [eighty] marks of excellence (anuvyañjana, dpe byed bzang po) were dazzling, and the thirty-two characteristics (lak a a, mtshan) adorn- ed his body. His parasol covered the ten thousand countries in the ten directions. The canopy, made of a net of jewels, was opened. The smell of excellent incense floated according to the movement of the wind, (folio khna, recto) and it was raining celestial flowers. In the air, numerous ascetics ( i, drang srong) and ‘science-holders’ (vidy dhara, rig ’dzin) were flying here and there and were praising kyamuni with numerous and pleasant words. Bodhisattvas possessing magical power (byang chub sems ’phrul ba), all the gods of each stage between heaven and earth, human beings, non-human beings, ‘birds of prey’ (garu a, nam mkha’ lding), ‘serpents’ (uraga, lto ’phye), ‘sirens’ (ki nara, mi ’am ci), animals and the departed (preta, yi dags)—everyone was listening respectfully to his teaching (chos). kyamuni was truly turning the wheel of the Law (dharmacakra, chos kyi ’khor lo), and the Law that he was preaching was understood by all according to their capacity of understanding. Rin chen, good son (dge ba’i bu), was much intimidated and extremely frightened, and started to shiver and his hair began to stand on his head. He was unable to ask for the teaching (chos tshul). Upon noticing him, the Bhagavat addressed him, ‘You, Rin chen, son of the gods, who are here in this numerous assembly, what
80 They are the four dhy na: the first, the second, the third and the fourth. Refer to LA VALLÉE POUSSIN 1971, tome V: 128ff. 162 YOSHIRO IMAEDA teaching (chos tshul) do you want to hear? Tell me.’ Thus spoke the Buddha kyamuni. The son of gods stood up in the crowd. (folio khna, verso) Then, having taken the cloth from his right shoulder, he prostrated himself, touching the feet of kyamuni with the top of his head, and walked around kyamuni three times, keeping him to his right. Joining his hands, and kneeling down, he asked respectfully, with his head down, ‘My father, a god possessed of form (gzugs yod lha), is called ’Od ’bar rgyal. As his life has been transferred and he has changed bodies, what must I do so that he will become like he was before, and what should I do so that it will be possible to encounter him? What must I do so that he will be happy (bde ba)?’ Thus asked Rin chen. 2a. The Bhagavat replied, ‘Is it the law (chos) that you want to ask me? Think this over well and listen to me attentively. In the three worlds (khams gsum), everything that is born dies. Birth is due to the power of acts (karma, las). Dying is also subordinated to acts. When the moment of the law of birth and death arrives, all the gods of each stage between the sky and the earth fall, and all who have great magical power (’phrul chen) and numerous powers (mthu) release them. Everything that exists in the three worlds dies sooner or later. As everybody dies in this way, there are at every moment more and more people in Hell. (folio gna, recto) To die sooner or later is the law of the cycle [of birth and death] in the three worlds (khams gsum ’khor ba’i chos). 2b. Everyone is proud of his longevity, but in the end nobody escapes from death. Human beings on earth have a life of a hundred years. For the “Four Great Kings” (C turmah r jak yikadeva), a day is worth fifty human years, and their life lasts a thousand years. For the gods of the sky, Mtshe ma (Y ma),81 a day is worth two hundred human years, and their life lasts four thousand years.
81 See, too, DE JONG 1983: 224. The copyist must have made a contraction at this point. According to the yu paryantas tra, P vol. 39, the passage should read as follows: For the Tr yastri a gods, one day is worth two hundred human years, and a lifespan is two thousand years. For the Y ma gods, one day is worth four hundred human years, and a lifespan is four thousand years. For the Tu ita gods, one day is worth eight hundred human years, a lifespan is eight thousand years. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 163
For the Nirm arati gods, a day is worth eight hundred human years, and their life lasts eight thousand years. For the Paranirmitava avartin gods, a day is worth a thousand82 human years, and their life lasts sixteen thousand years. For the Brahmap ri adya gods, their life lasts half a kalpa. For the Brahmapurohita gods, their life lasts a kalpa. For the Mah brahm a gods, their life lasts a kalpa and half. For the Par tt bha gods, their life lasts two kalpa. For the Apram bha gods, (folio gna, verso) their life lasts four kalpa. For the bh svara gods, their life lasts eight kalpa. For the Par tta ubha gods, their life lasts sixteen kalpa. For the Apram a ubha gods, their life lasts thirty-two kalpa. For the ubhak tsna gods, their life lasts sixty-two kalpa. For the Anabhraka gods, their life lasts a hundred and twenty-five kalpa. For the Pu yaprasava gods, their life lasts two hundred and fifty kalpa. For the B hatphala gods, their life lasts five hundred kalpa. For the Av ha gods, their life lasts one thousand kalpa. For the Atapa gods, their life lasts two thousand kalpa. For the Sudar ana gods, their life lasts four thousand kalpa. For the Sud s gods, their life lasts eight thousand kalpa. For the Akani ha gods, their life lasts sixteen thousand kalpa. (folio ngna , recto) For the k nanty yatana gods, their life lasts twenty thousand kalpa. For the Vijñ n nanty yatana gods, their life lasts forty thousand kalpa. For the Aki cany yatana gods, their life lasts sixty thousand kalpa. For the Naivasa jñ n sa jñ yatana gods, their life lasts eighty thousand kalpa. However, everyone dies when life is exhausted. Although all the gods are proud of their longevity, they all die. Likewise, your father is dead. All deaths are caused by the power of acts. It is difficult to purify the accumulation of past acts.
82 The figure ‘thousand’ must be a mistake for ‘one thousand six hundred’. Refer to the yu paryantas tra, P vol. 39, plates 62-2-3 to 62-3-1. 164 YOSHIRO IMAEDA
2c. All who are considered to be knowledgeable among the beings of this world do harmful acts in the hope that these acts will remedy (phan) [death. For example:] Some say that if one burns [the corpse] with fire, or if one throws it to the water, it remedies [death]. Some who are ignorant and in error say that if one puts the corpse on the top of a trident (tri la), it remedies [death].83 Some say that if one realises the mantra (sngags) of the brahmans (bram ze), it remedies death. Some says that if one observes the four heretic (mu stegs) laws, and one makes offerings, (folio ngna, verso) it is good for death. Some say that if one practises the law of a ’gur ma (= ? a gur ma, “singers”) and one realises its meaning, it remedies death. Some say that if one practises the law of the god of the fire (Agni), it remedies death. Some say that if one buries together with the corpse all the objects that belonged to the deceased, it remedies death. Some say also that if one sacrifices a horse, a buffalo (ma he, mahi a), a goat and a sheep for the deceased, it remedies death. These practices (chos) are all indescribable and are all erroneous. You, you have produced bodhicitta since innumerable kalpa. Today, look at all the erroneous practices in the ten directions.’ Having spoken thus, the Buddha emanated from his cranial protuberance various lights that illuminated everything in the three worlds. [The Buddha continued,] ‘Fools, the ignorant and those who are in error practise all the erroneous laws (log pa’i chos) in the hope of remedying death. Be aware that everything they practise produces only harm and never remedies death.’
2d. Then, Rin chen, son of the gods, inclined himself, prostrated himself and joined his hands to say to the Bhagavat (folio kma, recto), ‘I have understood the law of birth and death. Its virtue is indescribable. What is the medicine (sman) against death? I beg you, Bhagavat, to teach me.’ Thus he beseeched him. The Bhagavat replied, ‘All deaths are due to the power of acts. All acts are the actions committed in the past. Death results from the
83 Given the presence of words of obvious Indian origin such as ‘the mantra of the brahmans’, ‘Agni’ and ‘mah he (mahi a)’, which do not exist in Tibet, it seems that the eight funeral practices in this series were not those practiced in Tibet. It is therefore possible that this passage is a quotation from a canonical text that we have not yet been able to identify. THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 165 power of acts and there is no remedy against the death of others. All bad actions that one has committed in the past can be purified only by various good actions. An act such as killing others (pha rol) committed in the past can be purified by the practice (chos) of “not killing but nourishing”. All the erroneous practices are purified by the gift of the Law. All the passions, like desire (r ga, ’dod chags) and hatred (dve a, zhe sdang), are purified by the gift of the Law that leads to the other side. All the powers of the diabolical deities (lha ’dre) are subjected by the blessing (byin rlabs) of the Three Jewels (triratna). Thus, if one practises the law of good actions (dge ba’i chos), it remedies death. Furthermore, one can be born a god, move all the bodhisattvas, liberate oneself from all sin. Virtue is indescribable. The law that remedies death has clearly been preached by innumerable Buddhas of the past. (folio kma, verso) If one practises this law that remedies death, by practising the great formula (dh ra , gzungs sngags), one can be born where one wishes. Here, therefore, is the formula of Gtsug tor rgyal ba, the “Formula of the victorious cranial protuberance”; for the deceased whose life is exhausted, one has to practise it according to the ritual.84 ‘The tantrist (sngags mkhan) wears a white cloth, recalls mentally the formula (dh ra ), and makes a square ma ala. He makes offerings by dispersing various flowers and incense. In meditating clearly on the Tath gata, he prostrates himself. He joins his hands, folds the index fingers and presses their tips with his thumbs. He snaps his fingers (ban tol = bem tol).85 He recites the formula one hundred and eight times. Then he recites the formula twenty-one times over white mustard flour and disperses this flour over the corpse. Thus, escaping from the three evil destinies (durgati)—hell, the destiny of the animals (folio khma, recto) and the world of the Lord of death, that is to say, the world of the departed (preta)—the deceased will be born in the superior sphere (svarga, mtho ris). ‘[Even if one cannot practise in such a complete way], all the practices concerning this formula are beneficial; writing, contemp- lating, reading, explaining [to others], reciting, offering and deposit- ing in a st pa. ‘[On the other hand] if one attaches the formula to the top of a standard, and one places the standard either on a high mountain or on the roof of the house, by the simple fact of seeing it, being touched
84 What follows is an abbreviated and reordered extract of the text found shortly before the end of the U avijay dh ra (P vol. 7, no. 198, plates 167-5 to 168-4). 85 Refer to DE JONG 1983: 224. 166 YOSHIRO IMAEDA either by its shadow, by the dust that touched it, or by the wind that touched it, all the harmful causes are purified; hell is rejected, the passions (nyon mongs, kle a) are annihilated together with the sufferings of the worlds of the animals and those [in the world] of the Lord of death, that is to say, the departed (preta). A short life and ill luck are eliminated. Avoiding in this way the evil destinies (durgati), one is born in the superior sphere, a place of happiness (bde ba’i gnas). As soon as one sees the formula (folio khma, verso), all the stains of the acts accumulated over eight thousand kalpa are purified without a trace.’
End of the search of Rin chen, son of the gods. [The manuscript has been] copied and revised by Chos dbyangs.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE HISTORY AND OTHER TIBETAN TEXTS FROM DUNHUANG
As we have noted, the formula of U avijay that the Buddha kyamuni recommends and to which the whole History leads is absent from the text of the History. It is incomprehensible that the text seems to end here. About this, two hypotheses are possible. The first one would be to conceive of our History as a sort of Tibetan introduction to the Indian U avijay -dh ra , which was already well represented among the Tibetan manuscripts from Dun- huang (refer to n. 35 above). This hypothesis is not entirely satis- factory, because it does not explain the elements that we have noticed in the course of our study, namely, the presence of the word le’u ‘chapter, part’ in the title of the History (see p. 110), the two syllables bsngo’ ba at the beginning of the third line of the verso of folio khma of PT 218 after the colophon of the History (p. 112) and the presence of the Lha yul du lam bstan pa ‘Account of the way [which leads] to the country of the gods’, a text written twice on the verso of the text of our History, on PT 366-367 and IOL Tib J 151 (pp. 115-16). The second hypothesis is to understand our History as the first part of a more important whole at the end of which the formula (dh ra ) is presented. The two syllables bsngo’ ba, situated after the colophon of our History, could be the beginning of a new le’u ‘chapter’, which would be the second chapter of this larger work. As for the Lha yul du lam bstan pa, it would constitute the third and last THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 167 part of the same. Let us now examine the relationships between these elements and how they support this hypothesis. The Lha yul du lam bstan pa has been studied by LALOU (1938, 1949).86 The text written on the other side of the same manuscript, PT 239, designated by the term bsngo ba ‘substitution’, has been studied and translated into French by R.A. Stein.87 Finally, Madame Ariane Macdonald has studied both of them in a new perspective and demonstrated their close relationship (MACDONALD 1971: 373-76). The first phrase of the text of the Lha yul du lam bstan pa, ‘de nas gshin lam bstan pa’, ‘Then, the account of the way of the deceased’, and the fact that PT 733, the last folio and back cover for PT 239, furnishes the end title Lha yul du lam bstan pa rdzogs so ‘End of the Account of the way [which leads] to the country of the gods’, establish the reading order of these texts as follows: first the Bsngo ba and then the Lha yul du lam bstan pa. The first Bsngo ba, or ‘Substitution’ text, has six paragraphs. It is addressed directly to the deceased and indirectly to the living who perform the funeral rituals. At the beginning of each paragraph, the author indicates the pre-Buddhist term that should be ‘substituted’. They are the ring gur, ‘tent of the corps’, dbon lob ‘maternal relatives’, and the ’phru sangs, ‘pure grains’, terms the precise meaning of which we still do not understand. In addition, there are the skyibs lug, ‘sheep of shelter’, rta, ‘horse’ and gnyen sris g.yag, ‘yak, respect (part?) of relative’, which are the psychopomp animals used in the funeral rituals of the pre-Buddhist religion. The author condemns their use and recommends in their place Buddhist rituals, in particular the recitation of the formulae of the gods, lha’i sngags (mantra, dh ra ), without however specifying which one. We should recall that kyamuni in our History warns Rin chen against certain reprehensible practices like the sacrifice of animals
86 Up to now, we have identified five manuscripts (complete and incomplete) of this text: PT 37-III, 239, 366, 367 (these two fragments are counted as one), 733 and IOL Tib J 151. 87 STEIN 1970. In addition to the manuscripts already identified—PT 239 and IOL Tib J 504—we can add PT 37-V and I. O. vol. 56, fol. 25, which contain a part of the text. J.W. DE JONG (1983: 224) understands the word bsngo ba in a purely Buddhist context as ‘to transfer the merit’. However, our text is not written in an exclusively Buddhist environment, so such an interpretation is out of context, and does not take into consideration the religious situation of ancient Tibet. Our text is written in the climate of Tibet when it was undergoing the process of “Buddhicization”. In the context of funeral practices of the period, bsngo ba specifically means replacing one practice by another, as demonstrated by STEIN (1970). 168 YOSHIRO IMAEDA such as horses, buffaloes, goats and sheep (Chapter III, 2c, p. 169). It seems that the text develops this passage of our History so as to better adapt it to the religious context of ancient Tibet, and that it can be considered as a supplement to the History. Finally, in the second text, the Lha yul du lam bstan pa, the author presents three formulae whose recitation allows the deceased to avoid the three evil destinies (durgati): those of Avalokite vara, Gaganagañja and, above all, that of Durgatipari odhana, the import- ance of which we will explain in this context. At the end it presents the path to follow in order to arrive at the holy country of the gods, the place of perfect peace and happiness (bde skyid phun gsum tshogs pa’i lha yul dam pa). The formula of Durgatipari odhana, ‘Purifier of the evil destin- ies’, is in fact the fundamental formula (rtsa ba’i rig pa)88 presented in the Sarvadurgatipari odhanatantra, a text that is well represented in the Tibetan manuscripts from Dunhuang (see above n. 17). As the title clearly indicates, the aim of this tantra is to ‘purify all the evil destinies’, an aim it shares with the U avijay -dh ra (cf. p. 135). Thus, it is not the formula of the U avijay announced in the History that we find at the end of the Lha yul du lam bstan pa, but the fundamental formula of the Sarvadurgatipari odhanatantra, which shares the same end. The copyist probably preferred the fundamental formula of the Durgatipari odhana, because, having a common purpose, it is far shorter than that of the U avijay . The latter must have been considered too long in the context of the Buddhist conversion of Tibetans who were not accustomed to teachings of this type.89 From the doctrinal point of view, there is no
88 P vol. 5, no. 116, plates 84-3-1 to 2: O namo bhagavati sarvadurgati- pari odhana-r j ya tath gat ya arhate sa yaksa buddh ya tadyath o odhane odhane sarvap pa vi odhani uddhe vi uddhe sarvakarma vara a vi odhani sv h . See, too, LALOU 1949: 45. 89 Here is the complete formula according to the study by HIKATA (1939: 38- 40): O namo bhagavate sarvatrailokyaprativi i h ya buddh ya te nama , tad- yath , o bhr bhr bhr odhaya odhaya vi odhaya vi odhaya, asamasam ant vabh sa-sphara agatigahanasvabh vavi uddhe, abhi i catu m sarvatath - gata-sugatavarava-can m t bhi ekair, mah mudramantra-pada(ir) hara hara yu sandh ra , odhaya odhaya, gaganasvabh bavisuddhe, u avijayapari- uddhe, sahasrara misa codite, sarvatath gat valokini a p ramit parip ra i sarvatath gatam te da abh miprati hite, sarvatath gatah day dhi h n dhi hite mudre mudre mah mudre vajrak yasa gh anaparisuddhe, sarvakarma- vara a- vi uddhe, pratinivartaya- yurvi uddhe, sarvat th gatasamay dhi h n dhi hite, o muni muni mah muni, vimuni vimuni mah vimuni, mati mati mah mati, (su)mati sumati ma(h sumati), tathat bh tako ipari uddhe visphu abuddhi uddhe, he he jaya vijaya vijaya smara smara sphara sphara, sarvabuddh dhi h n dhi hite, uddhe THE CYCLE OF BIRTH AND DEATH 169 contradiction at all because the two formulae have the same aim, to save beings from the evil destinies. The formula announced by kyamuni in our History was later replaced by the fundamental formula of the Sarvadurgatipari odhanatantra, which, as we have noticed earlier (pp. 122-23), is plausibly the source of inspiration for the framework of our History. In the latter, as we have seen, Rin chen, son of the gods, is frightened by the sudden death of his father, ’Od ’bar rgyal, ‘King of Blazing Light’, whereupon he departs on a pilgrimage in order to find a solution to the situation. He asks a series of teachers, ‘What must I do so that my father will return to life, so that it will be possible to encounter him and so that he will be at peace and happy?’ In the Sarvadurgatipari odhana- tantra, it is a god named Vimalama iprabha (Nor bu dri ma med pa’i ’od), ‘Pure Jewel Light’, who dies suddenly, and it is Indra who then asks the Buddha, ‘O Lord, where is he reborn? Is he exper- iencing happiness or sorrow?’ (SKORUPSKI 1983: 5) In both texts, one is confronted with death and inquires about the whereabouts and the situation of the deceased. Given the thematic similarity between the two texts (even the presence of the word ’od, ‘light’, in the names of the deceased characters in both), we may propose that the author of the History might have used the Sarvadurgatipari odhanatantra as a source of inspiration and adapted it to his History. However, in the current state of our knowledge, we cannot consider the supposition of a trilogy consisting of our History, the Bsngo ba and the Lha yul du lam bstan pa as completely demonstrated, because no manuscript has yet been discovered that gives the three texts together and in the order that we have proposed. For these reasons, we are reduced to conjectures, though our working hypothesis seems to be the only theory that satisfactorily explains the designations written on the folios—Bsngo ba and Lha yul tu lam bstan pa—which are apparently independent of our History, as well as the word le’u ‘chapter’ in the title of the History, and finally, the mystery of the formula of the U avijay announ- ced but not presented in the History itself. The relationship of our